Surprise Surprise!
by Dutchgirl84
Summary: Harry returns to the Dursleys thinking about everything that's happened in the past 3 years. Something is not adding up, and he keeps having more and more questions about everything. He finds help in unlikely places! Finished year 4 and now taking year 5 by storm! Mild spanking. Sirius/Remus pairing. Other F/M and M/M pairings, but main focus on family not PLETE
1. Chapter 1

AN: Disclaimer for entire story: Don't own, except for original characters, spells and potions. Don't make money. Words in italics are thoughts, words in bold are parseltongue. Words between ** are written.

UPDATE: Will switch to past tense in Chapter 48. I will slowly be changing chapters 1-47 to past tense but it takes time, considering there's already 279,000 words in those chapters alone. Also, chapters will get longer as the story progresses.

Chapter 1

Staring out the window of the Hogwarts Express, Harry is lost in thought. Another year has passed, and once again it was everything but a calm quiet year. Finding out the truth about Sirius was a blow to what he always thought was true. Why wouldn't Dumbledore have saved him all those years ago? Why did Sirius never get a trial when Dumbledore was the Supreme Mugwump of the Wisengamot? He's worried about Sirius and wonders where he is now. Hopefully he's safe, but Harry has no doubt that even if he is, his living conditions must be terrible and he wishes he could do something.

"Harry. Harry. HARRY!" Hermione yells at him

"What Hermione?", Harry replies with a thoughtful expression on his face

"Where were you with your mind? You seemed to be somewhere completely different! Are you alright? Hermione replies with a worried look.

"Yes, Hermione, I'm fine. Just thinking about Sirius and wondering if he's ok. Where did Ron go? Wasn't he in here earlier?"

Harry notices a flash of anger in her eyes as she replies "yes he was, but he was being very immature and I told him so. He didn't like that we saved Sirius without him and that we won't tell him what happened".

"Oh. Well that's his loss. Oh look, we're almost at the station. Hopefully this summer will go faster than last and we'll be back on the train to Hogwarts before we know it".

Once Harry gets his trunk and makes it through the barrier, he sees Uncle Vernon waiting for him. He quietly follows him to the car, and they don't say a word to each other until they get to the house. Harry convinces his uncle to let him keep his trunk in return for staying out of the way. He promises to only come down for chores, and to stay in his room the rest of the time. He even tells his Uncle not to worry about feeding him this year, if they just leave him alone. When he gets to his room, he immediately pulls out parchment and a quill and starts writing out all the questions he has, and possible places to get the answers. Once he completes the list, he calls for Dobby. Not knowing if Dobby will show since they aren't bonded, he hopes it will work.

"Harry Potter Sir. How can Dobby help you?"

"Well Dobby, do you like being at Hogwarts as a free elf?"

"Oh, Dobby likes it very much Harry Potter Sir but Dobby would much rather be bonded to a wizard. See, an elf gets his magic from the wizard, so the more powerful the wizard, the more powerful the elf, Harry Potter sir! Hogwarts elves don't have as much power because we have to share the castles magic Harry Potter sir!"

"Well how would you like to be bonded to me Dobby? How would you like to become my elf?"

"Oh Harry Potter you is so kind! Dobby would be honored to be Harry Potter's elf!"

"Well Dobby, what do we need to do to bond? Also, nobody can know you are bonded to me, I want it to be a secret for now"

"Oh Harry Potter sir just needs to request on his magic for Dobby to be his elf and Dobby just needs to accept".  
"I, Harry James Potter, do hereby request on my magic for Dobby to be my elf. So mote it be".

"I, Dobby the elf, accept Harry James Potter as my master. Master Harry Potter sir, what can Dobby do for you?"

"Dobby, call me Master Harry. For now, please provide me with 3 meals a day. Also, can you go to the store and get me books on Wizarding Culture, Wizarding Etiquette and Wizarding Politics? Just charge it to my accounts, like with everything else you get for me. Also, please go to Gringotts and request for a two way parchment or mirror with my account manager so that I can easily transact business and ask questions without my relatives knowing. Now, nobody can see you in this house and nobody should see you entering or leaving this house. This is very important".

"Yes, Master Harry! I will do that right now!"

A few hours later, Harry is laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He is happy that he now has Dobby, and hopefully he will learn a lot about the world he lives in now through the books. However, what Harry doesn't know, is exactly how much those books are about to change his life.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A week has passed since Dobby got Harry the books he requested, and the list of questions has grown incredibly. Realizing that he is going to need help, but unsure of who to trust, he decides to use the two way parchment with Ragnok, his account manager at Gringotts, to see if he can provide advice. Through reading the books, he realizes that Goblins are very fair and honest and are mostly interested in making money.  
** Ragnok, I have a lot of questions about my rights in the wizarding world. Is this something you can help with, or do you have a solicitor you recommend?**

** Lord Potter, I can recommend an excellent solicitor. His name is Lord Henry Peterson. He is the best solicitor in the wizarding world, and he is on retainer by the Potter family. He will keep your confidentiality, and since he's a pureblood and a Lord himself, he can answer any questions you may have**

** Thank you Ragnok. Can you arrange a meeting with me, you and Lord Peterson as soon as possible, preferably at Gringotts? I'll need a secure portkey to get there. Please do not tell anyone of this meeting. Also, why are you calling me Lord Potter?**

**Lord Potter, I will send you a secure portkey with a meeting date and time as soon as possible. I am calling you Lord Potter because you are the last descendant of the Potter line, and therefore you are Lord Potter. That you don't know this indicates that this meeting needs to happen as soon as possible. I will be in touch. **

The next day, Harry takes a portkey to Gringotts for the meeting. The portkey drops him off in the middle of a meeting room. After getting up off the floor where he landed, he looks around and notices Ragnok and a man he assumes is Lord Peterson. Introductions are made, and they immediately sit down at the table to get down to business.  
Lord Peterson immediately begins to explain a lot of things. Harry finds out that he is not only Lord Potter, he is also Lord Gryffindor, Lord Peverell and Lord Black. When Harry is confused as to why, it is explained to him that he is the last descendant of Gryffindor and Peverall lines, and he is Lord Black because Sirius blood adopted him as an infant. When he got arrested, he lost his lordship and it immediately passed to the heir, which is Harry. Once a lordship is lost, it can't be regained, even if the person was falsely imprisoned. Next, Lord Peterson explains that since he is a Lord, he can apply for emancipation and it will automatically be granted. This law was put in place to protect underage Lords of ancient and noble houses. Lord Peterson explains that he has already applied and gotten it granted for Harry, since it is obvious that his magical guardian has not been doing their job. Upon hearing his, Harry starts to really think.

"Lord Peterson, what exactly does it mean that I'm emancipated?"

"Well Lord Potter-Black, it means that in the eyes of the wizarding world, you are an adult. You no longer have the trace on your wand and you can make your own decisions about your life. Nobody can make decisions for you anymore. It also means that you have complete control over all your vaults, not just the trust vault you had until now"

"What do you mean trust vault? There is more?"

Ragnok decides this is the time to jump into the conversation. "Lord Potter, you have many vaults. Here is a general overview:  
Potter Vaults : 95,569,455 Galleons, 4,585 books and 6,456 other items including heirlooms, 4 properties.  
Gryffindor Vaults: 5,546,564 Galleons, 9,546 books and 7,546 other items including heirlooms, 1/4 of Hogwarts, 1 property in Hogsmeade.  
Peverell Vaults: 2,554,654 galleons, 986 books and 1,058 other items including heirlooms, no properties.  
Black Vaults: 185,235,354 Galleons, 8,564 books and 9,654 other items including heirlooms, 7 properties. "

Harry just stares at Ragnok with his mouth wide open. "I have been wearing rags and living in the cupboard under the stairs and now I find out I'm rich? I can't believe this! How can I make sure nobody can take advantage of me? And can I see these properties? I would love to move out of my uncle's house if I can get one of my properties properly warded"

"Lord Potter-Black, we will have to talk sometime about you living in the cupboard under the stairs since your Aunt and Uncle have received monthly payments for your care. But for now, yes you are very rich. You can live in any of these properties, and they all have house elves that live there that are bonded to each family. I would advise that you don't live there without an adult. I know you are emancipated, but it is always good to have a trained wizard with you just in case. Gringotts can do excellent warding on any property and nobody will be able to find it and you will be very safe" Lord Peterson replies.

"Lord Potter-Black, here is a listing of the properties, are there any that you would like to have warded?" Ragnok asks.

"I like this one, Black Manor. I'm assuming since it has elves it is in good condition and fully furnished? If so, I would like to move as soon as possible"

Lord Peterson has a small smile on his face at seeing the excitement in Harry and replies "It will be in excellent condition and fully furnished. Gringotts can ward it today, and alert the house elves to your arrival. If you don't mind me asking, who will be living with you?"

"I will have Sirius live with me. Lord Peterson, I need your help getting him freed of all charges. He is innocent and never had a trial. He will be safe at Black Manor, and I can get to know him better. I know I am emancipated, but I do want a father figure in my life. Sirius is my godfather, and I'd really like to get to know him better"

"That is an excellent idea Lord Potter-Black. I'm assuming you know how to contact him. We can include a portkey that can only be used by him with his magical signature that will take him straight to the manor. I will get started on getting a trial put together to get him acquitted of all charges. I will meet with you again once you are settled in and you can provide any evidence you have, plus we can get pensieve memories from you and Sirius"

"Thank you Lord Peterson. I should really get back to my relatives. I don't want them to notice I'm gone. Ragnok, thank you for all the information and letting us meet here. I will await the portkey to Black Manor as soon as possible once it's warded. Also, can you please create a vault for Sirius Black, and put in 10,000,000? Transfer the funds from the Black vaults."

"Yes Lord Potter-Black. Before you leave, here are your lordship rings. Please slip each on your right ring finger. They will then merge into one ring with all four crests on it. With this, you officially claim your lordships"

Harry puts on the rings. "Thank you. I will not use the Gryffindor and Peverall names for now, but I might change that later"

Two days later Harry receives a letter from Ragnok with a portkey to Black Manor. He goes downstairs to tell his aunt and uncle he is leaving and not coming back, grabs his trunk and Hedwigs cage, gives one final look around and takes the portkey. He lands in a spacious living room, but before he even notices anything he is enveloped in a hug. Once he is let go, he realizes that it's Sirius and they both fall down on the couch with smiles on their faces.

"So Harry, want to explain all this to me?"

"I will, but I need you to swear on your magic first that you won't share anything I tell you, unless I expressly say you can. I don't know you very well and while I do trust you, I need to be careful"

Sirius stands up, puts his wand in front of himself straight up and says "I, Sirius Orion Black, do hereby swear on my magic that I will not share anything Harry James Potter tells me, unless he expressly permits me to do so. So mote it be"

Harry then starts to explain everything, and by looking at Sirius, he can tell that he is slowly getting angry. However, Harry is unsure why.

"Oh, and Sirius, I had them create a vault in your name and put 10,000,000 in it. The lordship should have been yours so I want you to live comfortably. If you ever need more, I will put in more. I want to make sure you have everything you need. Also, Lord Peterson is organizing a trial for you and we will meet with him next week so he can get evidence of your innocence".

"Harry, you didn't have to create a vault for me but I appreciate it. I'm just happy I'm going to be free and that I have you again. I understand why you are emancipated, but I hope you'll still accept my guidance since you are still only thirteen. I'm angry at Dumbledore. As your magical guardian, he should have known all of this already and he should have informed you. He also should not have left you with those people!"

"I know Sirius, but for now I'm not going to do anything. I want to get everything in order first, learn more about the wizarding world, and keep Dumbledore in the dark. And yes, I would love your guidance. I know I need a father figure in my life, and I want you to be that person. I'm still young, and I still have a lot to learn. I'm just happy that legally I can make my own choices and decisions. We need to get to know each other better"

"Absolutely Harry. How about we get some supper, and we can talk about your first few years at Hogwarts? I'm dying to know what all you've been up to! If you're anything like the Marauders you'll have lots to tell! I know this past year was dangerous, but I'm sure your first two years were lots of fun!"

"ehhh sure Sirius. I don't know how much fun though. Lets get some food first, I'm sure we can think more clearly with a full belly"

Sirius notices the apprehensive look on Harry's face with the mention of his first few years, but doesn't understand why. How much can really go wrong?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Harry and Sirius sit down at the dining table, and Dobby immediately pops in with food. Both Harry and Sirius are staring at the table with wide eyes, since neither has seen that much food in a long time! They both grin at each other and start eating.  
Not much is said throughout the meal, as they are both simply enjoying the food. Suddenly, a beautiful black owl flies into the room and drops an envelope in front of Harry. He opens it, and realizes it's from Ragnok. "Sirius, Ragnok is asking me to come into Gringotts as soon as possible. While reviewing my accounts like I requested he decided to have mum and dads will unsealed and he said he found something. Do you want to come with me?"

"Sure Harry, but I'll have to come as Padfoot since I can't be seen. Will Lord Peterson be there? I'd like to meet him if possible"

"Yes, it says he'll be there and they included a portkey so you can come with me without having to come as Padfoot"

"Ok Harry, let me finish my pudding and then we'll leave".

An hour later, Harry and Sirius arrive in Ragnok's office, and see that Lord Peterson is already there. They both take a seat, and then look at Ragnok, wondering what this is all about. "Lord Potter-Black, when I noticed that your parents' will was sealed I was wondering why. It shouldn't be sealed to you since you are Lord Potter and you should have had access to it. I had it unsealed because of this, and while reading it I realized why it was sealed. See, the will leaves everything to you, but it also leaves some money to Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. They were supposed to get 100,000 galleons each. I have already corrected this and transferred those funds. I also sent a letter to Remus Lupin with a portkey, asking him to meet me as soon as possible. Now, the will also designates who will take care of you should your parents pass away. This is where it gets interesting. While it names Sirius Black as your godfather, and Albus Dumbledore as your magical guardian, there is something else that should have been done. See, the will specifically states that Albus Dumbledore will only be your magical guardian IF both your godfathers have died. Since Sirius Black didn't die, Albus Dumbledore should not have been your magical guardian. Instead, you should have gone to your second godfather. See, your second godfather does not know that he was named in your will. It says here that your parents trust him since he was your mother's best friend, but they wanted Sirius to be the first choice. So they never told anyone they put this provision in their will. When Albus Dumbledore ignored the will and had it sealed, he assumed guardianship of you and placed you with your relatives even though that is not what your parents wanted. Gringotts will be investigating how this could have happened, and Lord Peterson has already offered to start a lawsuit against Albus Dumbledore should you wish to do so"

Both Harry and Sirius are confused, and are starting to get angrier with Dumbledore the more Ragnok talks. Suddenly, Harry realizes what Ragnok has said. "Ragnok, what do you mean second godfather? Who is it? Are you telling me he is alive and I could have lived with him?"

"Yes Lord Potter-Black, he is alive. I have send him a letter with portkey as well to inform him of this provision in the will. While Sirius Black is listed as godfather first, until he is exonerated he can't act as such. In that case, the will states that your second godfather needs to be informed. Lord Potter-Black, your second godfather is Severus Snape. He was your mother's best friend growing up, and she knew he would take care of you if needed"

"NO BLOODY WAY! I will not live with him. I'm emancipated so I don't have to, and he has treated me like dirt for the past three years. No!"

"Harry James Potter! Lower your voice and watch your language. This is what your parents wanted, and if he was your mother's best friend growing up then there might be more to him that you don't know. He is not my favorite person either, but you will treat him with respect until we figure out what to do, understood?"

"I'm sorry Sirius. I will try to keep my temper, but I'm not happy about this. I have you, I don't need him"

"That's all I'm asking Harry. This is news to all of us, and we need to try to make the best of it. Besides, you may not like him but Severus is a very powerful wizard and he could be of great help to you. Also, it would be nice to know that you have someone you can talk to at Hogwarts when you go back."

Suddenly there's a loud crack, and both Snape and Remus land in the middle of the room. They look at each other, then at the other occupants of the room in confusion. Snape is the first to recover from the shock. "What is going on here? Why did I have to come here so suddenly and what are Potter and Black doing here? And who are you?"

"I'm Lord Peterson, Lord Potter-Black's solicitor"

"LORD Potter-Black? Since when is Potter a Lord? Will someone please explain?"

Ragnok asks both Remus, who still hasn't fully recovered from the shock, and Snape to have a seat. He explains how he unsealed the will of James and Lilly Potter. He then tells Remus of the 100,000 galleons that were added to his vault. He gives Remus a minute to get over the shock, but instead tears start falling down Remus face. Everyone in the room understands, as they all know how hard it has been for Remus to get work since he's a werewolf. Ragnok then turns to Snape, and starts explaining his part in the will. When he is done explaining, he tells them he has something else that he needs to inform Snape of since he is Lord Potter-Black's godfather, and it is in explanation of why Sirius and Lord Peterson are there and how Harry claimed his Lordship. However, before he can do so, he needs a Wizard's Oath.

"I, Severus Tobias Snape, do hereby declare on my magic to keep everything from this meeting confidential and to not share it with anyone who is not in this room. So Mote it Be"

"I, Remus Lupin, do hereby declare on my magic to keep everything from this meeting confidential and to not share it with anyone who is not in this room. So Mote it Be"

"Wonderful. Mr Snape and Mr. Lupin, a few weeks ago Lord Potter-Black send me a request for an accounting of his trust vault. When I addressed him as Lord Potter, he didn't know what I was talking about. I invited him here for a meeting, and he requested a solicitor. Lord Peterson has been on retainer for the Potter family for a long time, and he joined us here. I explained to him that he can claim his lordship rings since he is the last remaining heir of the Potter family and therefore he was Lord Potter. When we did a test to confirm his identity, it also came out that he is not just Lord Potter. He is also Lord Black, Lord Gryffindor and Lord Peverell. Lord Potter-Black has decided to claim all four lordship, but to keep his name as just Lord Potter-Black. This is not public knowledge. He wants the information to remain secret until at least the end of the summer so that he can get all his affairs in order. Also, since he is now a Lord, he has been emancipated. This means that he can make all legal and financial decisions for himself. Since he has been mistreated at his relatives house, he has moved to Black Manor and he had Mr. Black move in with him. Lord Peterson is working on getting Mr. Black a trial to get him acquitted of all charges. However, Mr. Black won't be able to claim lordship anymore since he lost it when he was send to Azkaban. Albus Dumbledore was Lord Potter-Black's magical guardian and he should have informed Lord Potter-Black of his lordships and his ability to claim them. Also, his relatives had been getting a monthly stipend to take care of Lord Potter-Black, but instead Lord Potter-Black was forced to live in a cupboard under the stairs and treated like a common house elf. Albus Dumbledore should have stepped in and corrected this, but he didn't. This is why Lord Potter-Black does not want Albus Dumbledore to know anything about this for as long as possible."

Both Snape and Remus are astounded by the amount of information they have just gotten. Remus suddenly realizes the last part of what Ragnok said.

"Harry, what does Ragnok mean you lived in a cupboard under the stairs and were treated like a common house elf?"

"Oh, well that's true but I don't want to talk about that"

"Harry, you might not want to talk to me about it, but you need to talk to someone"

"I'll think about it. Now that you all know what's been happening with my summer, I want to know what Snape thinks about all this. I mean, no offense Snape but you've treated me like dirt for years. I don't see that changing".

"Harry, I did not know about this. If I had known, I would have taken you in and raised you like my son all those years. I've been treating you the way I have because Dumbledore said that The Dark Lord will come back and I need to keep my cover as a spy. I couldn't been seen being nice to you, since that would blow my cover. However, I don't want to go back as a spy, and now that I know that I'm your godfather, I want to be there for you. Your mother would have wanted me to be there and will be. I apologize for the way I acted towards you, and I understand if you can't forgive me"

"Snape, I understand why you did what you did, but it's hard to just change how I think about you so quickly. I'm willing to give it a try, but it will take some time."

"Harry, pup, why don't we have Severus and Remus move in with us at Black Manor? You can get to know Severus as a different person and you can get to know Remus as something other than your teacher. Also, I don't know if you knew this, but Remus and I were really close before I went to Azkaban, and it would mean a lot to me to get the opportunity to reconnect with him"

"yes, Sirius, that's fine. The manor is big enough, and if we need time apart there's plenty of space to do that. Snape, Remus, do you want to move into Black Manor with us?"

"Harry, I would love to! I wanted to get to know you better as your professor for DADA last year, but it was hard with everything going on. I would like to get to know you better on a personal level, and I look forward to reconnecting with Sirius"

"Harry, it would be nice to get to know you, but I have a lot of brewing that I need to do for the infirmary so I need to be near my potions lab. I'm sorry"

"Oh, Snape, Black Manor has a huge Potions lab! I remember seeing it on the drawing of Black Manor when I was trying to decide where to live. You are welcome to make it your own. We all know I'm rubbish at potions, and I'm sure Sirius and Remus won't mind letting you have it"

"Are you sure Harry? If that's possible, then I would like to move to Black Manor".

Once Harry gives Snape and Remus the piece of paper with the address so they can find it once they get packed and ready to move, Sirius and Harry decide to head home. Once they get there, they both sink down on the couch and just stare of into space, trying to process what just happened.

Two days later, Snape and Remus show up at Black Manor. One of the elves, Binky, takes them to their rooms. Sirius and Harry are out back flying, and Snape and Remus decide to go out and say hello. Remus smiles at seeing Harry and Sirius so at ease with each other. He knows that no matter what happens, Sirius will be a great godfather to Harry and give him the family he has always wanted. Snape smiles inwardly, as he's never seen Harry so relaxed and happy before. He realizes that his opinion of Harry has been wrong, and he vows to make an effort to change that. He knows it won't be easy, but he's willing to try.

Once Harry and Sirius notice Snape and Remus they all head inside for lunch. At first, it's incredibly awkward, but slowly conversation starts flowing better.  
"Snape, what do you want me to call you when here? It'd be weird to call you professor during the summer"

"Harry, you may call me Severus. Do not call me Snape, it is disrespectful"

"Well, you always called me Potter. But alright, I'll call you Severus."

"Thank you Harry, how are you doing on your summer homework?"

"I haven't started it yet. I've been a little busy and I have plenty of time left! Besides, nobody besides Hermione actually tries on their summer homework anyway. I mean, it's summer. We're supposed to relax and not worry about school"  
By the time Harry finishes saying that, Severus has a scowl on his face, Sirius is looking at him and Remus is not looking to happy either.

"Pup, even if you thought that, you shouldn't have said that out loud. Especially in front of two of your teachers. Now they're going to make you do it!"

"Damn right I'll make him do it. Harry, when we are done with lunch you will go upstairs and get your schoolwork. You will then go to the library and start on it. I can check your potions essay when it's done, and I'm sure Remus would check your DADA essay when it's done. And you better make an honest effort, because if I don't think you tried I might just assign extra work"

"That's not fair! You can't tell me what to do! I'll do my homework when I feel like it, and I don't feel like it today. It's not due until the first class of the school year and I don't have to show it to you before then!"

"Harry James, what did I tell you about raising your voice at other people? It will not hurt you to do at least one essay this afternoon. It looks like it's going to rain anyway, and that way you won't have to do it when it's nice out and you could be flying"

"I'm sorry Sirius, I lost my temper. I'll start on an essay this afternoon, but I'm not doing homework every day."

"Ok pup, just one essay. That's all I'm asking for. Since you are done with lunch, why don't you get started on that? The sooner you are done, the sooner we can have fun! Who knows, maybe you'll finally get to tell us about the last few years later today!"

With a pout on his face, Harry heads up to his room to get his schoolwork. What he doesn't realize is that he has just left three adults who realize that while Harry may be emancipated, he is only thirteen and he will need a lot of guidance to grow up to be a respectful young man.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

While Harry is in the library working on his homework, Severus, Sirius and Remus remain at the dining table just talking. They catch up on everything that's been happening for the last years, and their worries for the future. They all know a war will break out at some point, but they have no idea when. They realize they can have a conversation with each other without throwing insults around. They know it takes effort, but for the sake of Harry, they all agree to be civil with one another. Pretty soon the conversation turns to Harry and his reaction to things so far.

"I think Harry is handling everything very well, and I think he has a good understand of what is happening in his life. But I also think he is just a thirteen year old boy and he needs boundaries. His reaction to being told to do homework is a good example that if we don't set those boundaries and have consequences, he will become a spoiled brat. I love Harry, but I want to see him grow up to the young man we all know he can be. But to do that, he needs to know when to be serious, when to have fun, and that sometimes he has to do things he doesn't want because they need to be done. We know he is emancipated, but he needs parents. Often when younger children were emancipated when they claimed their lordship, they still had guardians to take care of them. The guardians just can't access any of their money or make decisions on their behalf. I think we should create some rules and boundaries for Harry, and discuss them with him so he knows what to expect. I also think we should explain that if he breaks the rules, he will be punished like any other child".

"I agree with you Sirius. We are his godfathers, and James and Lily would want us to parent him. I don't know James well enough, but I know Lily would have been a loving mother while at the same time making sure Harry was a well behaved boy. However, if we do this, we need to be united. That means if one of us punishes him, the others need to back it up. Once he realizes he has to follow the rules, he will try to test the boundaries and he will likely try to get out of punishment. I've seen him break plenty of rules at Hogwarts, and I'm sure Remus has too. I don't think he has ever had consequences, so he might struggle at first but I have no doubt that he'll be happier for it."

"Alright Severus, so let's think of the basic rules and consequences we want for him, and then we can talk to him later."

The remainder of the afternoon, the three men discuss Harry. They realize that while Severus and Remus were very much on the same page when it comes to what the rules and consequences should be, Sirius is less strict. However, after a long discussion they come to several compromises that they are all happy with, and which they believe will give Harry rules to protect him, keep him safe, happy and healthy while at the same time giving him enough freedom to be himself.

Later that evening they are all sitting around the fireplace. Remus and Sirius are sharing stories of their school days, and Harry realizes he hasn't laughed so hard in a long time. He loves hearing the Marauder stories, and all the pranking they did while at school. Even Severus occasionally chimes in with stories of how he got back with the Marauders whenever they pranked him.

When there is a break in the story telling, Sirius suddenly looks over at Harry. "Harry, while we are on the topic, why don't you tell us about your first three years at Hogwarts? Severus probably knows a lot, and Remus knows last year but we don't know anything about your first two years. I'm sure you have some good stories as well!"

"uhhh are you sure Sirius? It's getting kind of late, we can do this some other time?"

"Yes Harry I'm sure. It's not that late, I'd love to hear these stories!" If Sirius would have looked at Severus and Remus (who had heard the main stories while a teacher) at that time he would have gotten seriously worried about what could be so bad, but he was to focused on Harry to notice.

"Uh ok, well if you're sure. Well, Hagrid took me to Diagon Alley to get my school supplies. It was my first time seeing magic and I loved it! Everything was moving, and looked interesting. Hagrid took me to Gringotts, and we just went down my supply list to get what I needed. I met Malfoy at Madam Malkins" At this Harry shudders at the memory. "He reminded me of my cousin, and let's just say that's not a good thing. Hagrid told me about the different houses at Hogwarts, and after I asked him he told me how Voldemort killed my parents and gave me my scare. I didn't know that. My aunt always told me my parents died in a car crash. I was happy to know what really happened and to know they died as heroes. I met Ron on the Hogwarts Express. We became friends instantly! The Weasleys had helped me get through the barrier because I didn't know how to get through, and the Twins helped me with my trunk. We met Hermione on the train too, but she was being very bossy and a complete know-it-all. Ron and I didn't really like her. When we got to Hogwarts, Malfoy tried to become my friend but he insulted Ron when doing so, so I turned him down. I knew he was going to be in Slytherin, and Ron had told me how Voldemort was a Slytherin so when the sorting hat wanted to put me in Slytherin I asked it to put me anywhere but there. "

Severus suddenly looks at Harry sharply. "The sorting hat wanted to put you in Slytherin? I should be insulted that you talked it out of it, but I understand your reasoning. You're lucky you're not in Slytherin, you probably would have been expelled by now".

"What do you mean expelled?!"

"Oh, you'll find out later Sirius. Anyway, I got sorted into Gryffindor as you know. Nothing really exciting happened for weeks, except I was loving magic and learning all about it. I got stared at a lot, which I hated but after a couple weeks that got better. I didn't really get into any trouble, and just wanted to make friends and get to know the school. That all changed at Halloween though. "

"I knew there was a reason I've always hated that holiday" Sirius snorts. "What happened on Halloween?".

"Harry, I think you are leaving out a few things" Severus says with a raised eyebrow.

Harry gives him a dirty look, sighs, and starts talking again. "Well just some small things. During the first flying lesson, Neville fell off his broom. Madam Hooch had to take him to the hospital wing and told us we weren't allowed to fly until she got back. I'd never been on a broom so I didn't care. When Neville fell, he had dropped his Remembrall, and Malfoy picked it up. I told him to give it back, but he wouldn't. He got on his broom, and told me to come get it. So I got on my broom and went after him. He then decided to throw it towards the castle. I didn't want it to break, so I went after it, and right before it would have hit the castle I did this flip and caught in. When I landed, Professor McGonnagal came up and told me to follow her. I thought I was in serious trouble, but she took me to meet Wood instead. Wood was the Quidditch captain, and she told me I made the team as a seeker! I didn't even get detention or anything" Harry finishes with a smile.

Sirius jumps up and gives him a hug "Your first year! You made the team the first year! That's excellent Harry!".

Severus off course has to chime in at that point, "Yes he made the team, but he broke the rules doing it. Harry should have been given at least detention for disobeying a teacher, even if he also made the team."

"I know Severus, I was expecting to get detention but I'm not going to complain when I don't get any. I'm not crazy! Anyway. Not much later Malfoy decides to challenge me to a duel at midnight, and Ron accepts for me. This was before I got my Invisibility Cloak or the Marauders Map, so we had to be careful. We ran into Hermione on the way there, and we get there without any problems. Malfoy doesn't show, but Mrs. Norris does! I hate that cat, it always shows up at the wrong times! We decide to run, without looking where we are, and we end up on the third floor at a dead end. Hermione knew Alohamora so she unlocked the door for us and we run inside. What we forgot was that the third floor was forbidden for students, and we found out why. The room was locked because of a huge three headed dog! We ran from the room and ran straight back to Gryffindor Tower without stopping or worrying about being caught. We didn't get caught, luckily. Hermione noticed that the dog was standing on a trap door, so we figured it was guarding something, but didn't know what. This is when I remembered the package that Hagrid had gotten at Gringotts when we were there, that he told me was top secret. We figured it was that, but didn't know what it was. We were tired, so we went to bed and forgot all about it after that". Remus had turned white at hearing about the three headed dog, and Harry doesn't think he looks good at all. "Remus, are you alright?"

"Harry, please tell me you never went near that dog again?"

"Uhh well, I can't tell you that. But don't look at me! Severus over there got bitten by it!" This earns him a glare from Severus, but Harry just shrugs it off. He knows it got the attention away from the fact that he admitted to going near it again, at least for now. "So anyway, back to Halloween. Well, it started early that day in Charms. Hermione had been acting like a know-it-all like usual, and Ron had told her that it was no wonder she didn't have any friends. She heard him, and ran to the bathroom crying. She didn't even attend classes that day! Anyone that knows Hermione knows how upset she'd have to be. At the feast we still didn't see her, when suddenly Quirrell bursts into the Great Hall and yells that there's a troll in the dungeons. Dumbledore orders the prefects to take everyone to their houses. However, I remember that Hermione is in the bathroom and she doesn't know about the troll. I grab Ron and we run to the bathroom to warn her, only we are too late. The troll apparently got out of the dungeons and had already walked into the bathroom where Hermione was! We run in, and after some running around, and me ending up on its shoulder, we used Wingardium Leviosa to knock it out with its own club. By the way, don't ever get troll bogies on your wand. They are disgusting and hard to clean off. So right after we do that Severus, Professor McGonnagal and Professor Quirrell come running in. This is when I notice the gash on Severus' leg, which I later find out is because of the three headed dog. When asked what we were thinking, Hermione makes up a quick story to get us out of trouble. We actually ended up earning points! Off course, after this Hermione became one of our friends too"

Sirius and Remus are both looking a little white, and Severus is glaring at him.

"Harry James! Why did you not go tell a teacher when you realized where Hermione was? Do you have any idea how dangerous a troll is! You could have been killed!"

"I know Remus, but we didn't think about that and there were no teachers around! We didn't expect to have to fight the troll!"

"I knew you three were lying at the time, but since I wasn't your Head of House there was nothing I could have done. I can guarantee you I would not have awarded points for that behavior!"

"Oh, I know Severus. We were happy Professor McGonnagal was there because we knew you would have given us detention and taken a lot more points. I'm kind of thirsty, can we take a break?"

"Sure Pup. Let's get some tea, and give me a minute to calm down after finding out my pup has encountered a three headed dog and a troll in his first two months at Hogwarts!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"Alright, so let's continue with this story if we ever want to get to bed tonight. What's next, the Quidditch game?"

"Yes. Now keep in mind that Severus made a terrible first impression to us Gryffindors, so you can't really blame us for what we thought at the time. Our first Quidditch match was against Slytherin. Everything was going great, until suddenly my broom tried to knock me off! I didn't know what was happening, but just tried to hold on" Harry notices that Sirius is looking slightly green when he mentions this. "Hermione and Ron told me later that they looked at the teachers stand, and noticed that Severus wasn't blinking and was mouthing something, which Hermione said is how you jinx something or someone. So she ended up going to the teachers stand and set Severus' robes on fire to get him to break contact. What she didn't realize at the time, but we found out later is that by doing so she knocked several other teachers over as well" Harry continues with a slightly guilty look on his face.

Severus isn't looking too happy when he replies "I knew you lot had something to do with that! Too bad it's too late to give her detention for that now".

"So did you get back on your broom? You didn't fall off did you?" Sirius says while still looking worried.

"No, I didn't fall off. I was able to get back on my broom. After a bit I saw the snitch and went into a dive to catch it. I pulled up right in time to not crash into the ground, but took a tumble when reaching for the snitch. Turns out, I caught the snitch in my mouth! I was pretty happy to win our first game of the season!"

"You caught it with your mouth? That has to be the strangest way to win a Quidditch game pup! So the rest of your year went fairly smoothly, right?"

"Uhh not really Sirius. There's more. So after that game we were visiting Hagrid, and we mentioned that we had seen that Severus had gotten bitten by that dog. Hagrid asked how we knew about Fluffy. That's the name of that three headed dog by the way. When we asked him about what Fluffy was guarding, he said that that's something between Professor Dumbledore and Nicholas Flamel. He wouldn't tell us anymore after that because he realized he shouldn't have said that much to begin with.

So after that it was Christmas. I got several presents from the Weasleys and some friends but the best gift was anonymous. I found out later that Dumbledore had sent it to me. I didn't know what it was at first, but it was my invisibility cloak! Imagine how excited we were when we saw that!"

"Off course Dumbledore would sent an eleven year old an invisibility cloak. There is no way you would have used for it trouble or anything" Severus interrupts with a scowl.

Sirius on the other hand is looking thoughtful, "what was Dumbledore doing with James' cloak? As far as we know James never gave it to him and he was really protective of it". Both Severus and Remus look at him and then shrug, clearly not knowing that either.

Harry decides it's best to just continue the story. "So we weren't able to find Nicholas Flamel in the library before break, so we decided that I should use the cloak and try looking in the restricted section at night. So I did, only when I was there Mr. Filch heard me so I had to run. I ran into Severus and Professor Quirrell having an argument in the hallway, but neither of them saw me, but… "

"We heard you alright", Severus interrupts, "I just couldn't see or feel anything. If I had known you had that cloak I would have known you were there".

"Ok, well at the time you didn't know. So I turned around and entered through this door trying to get away, and the room was empty except for this really big mirror. I didn't know what it was, but when I stood in front of it I…." Harry swallows at this, remembering the emotions he felt sitting in front of that mirror.

"Go on pup, what did you see?"

"I saw my parents…"

"Oh pup, I'm so sorry. I can't imagine what you must have been feeling" Sirius says while standing up and going over to Harry to wrap him in a hug. Harry simply holds Sirius for a bit before letting go, swallowing, and getting up the nerve to continue the story.

"Dumbledore caught me there after several nights, and he told me it was the Mirror of Erised and it shows the hearts deepest desire. Dumbledore then told me the mirror was going to be moved, and that I shouldn't go looking for it again. So I didn't.

After break, we finally found out who Nicholas Flamel was, purely by accident I might add. He was a famous alchemist. We found out that he had created the philosopher's stone. That's when we knew what Fluffy was guarding."

"And when you found this out, you decided to let it go, right? You didn't continue your little investigation?" Sirius asks with a questioning look.

"Well, we did for a while. See, we went down to Hagrid's one day and when we got there, it was really hot in his hut. It turned out that he had won a dragon's egg from some guy at a pub. It was so hot because Hagrid was letting it hatch!"

"HARRY JAMES! Please tell me you went to a teacher and reported this and did not stay to watch it hatch!" Sirius and Remus shout at the same time. Harry winces and tries to disappear into the couch cushions.

Severus gives him a calculating look, and suddenly he realizes something "Wait, that story that Malfoy told that got you all in detention, about there being dragon. That was true?"

"Uhh yes it was. We ended up staying and watched it hatch. It was so cute! We did realize that Hagrid couldn't keep a dragon in his wooden hut. That was just a recipe for disaster, so I came up with the idea to write to Charlie and see if he knew what we should do since he works with dragons."

"Well, I'm glad you at least had that much sense, although I can't imagine it being easy to convince Hagrid to give up a dragon. He's always wanted one" Remus says.

"Yeah, it wasn't easy. We made a plan with Charlie to deliver the dragon to some of his friends at midnight on the Astronomy tower. They were going to take Norbert to the dragon reserve. We had to take the dragon, but Malfoy saw us. We had the cloak, but after we left the astronomy tower, we had forgotten to put the cloak back on. Malfoy went and told Professor McGonnagal. We all ended up in detention and she took 50 points from each of us! She didn't believe the story about the dragon, so 150 points was excessive and completely unfair!"

"Young man, you were out in the castle in the middle of the night. You deserved punishment, and Professor McGonnagal was being hard on you all because she didn't want you to go wandering again. I say it was completely fair" Severus replies sternly.

Harry just glares back at him, and continues his story. "So our detention was with Hagrid. Apparently something was killing unicorns in the forest, and he wanted us to go with us to find out more. I found it ridiculous that we got detention at night for being out at night. That doesn't make any sense. And students weren't allowed in the forest, so they send us there for detention? Hypocrytical if you ask me. So we ended up splitting up, and Malfoy and I were paired together. We came upon the unicorn, but noticed something or someone was drinking from it. My scar really hurt. Malfoy ran screaming, and I fell over the root of a tree when trying to slowly walk backwards. The cloaked figure came towards me, but suddenly a huge centaur named Firenze jumped in and saved me. He brought me to the end of the forest where we met the rest of the group. He said it wasn't safe in the forest, especially for me. We didn't know what this cloaked figure was. We found out later that it was Voldemort, drinking unicorn blood to try and stay alive."

Suddenly there is a loud thump, and when Harry looks over he realizes that Sirius has fainted.

After a few minutes, Sirius slowly wakes up again, and after a few more minutes he signals for Harry to continue the story.

"Are you sure? We can continue this another day?"

"No continue. I want to at least get through year one today, we might have to do year two a different day if it's anything like year one. So far I think I was wrong to think that not much can happen in your first few years of Hogwarts".

"Alright if you're sure Sirius. So after that we figured out that Voldemort was after the stone. After exams, I suddenly realized that it was odd that Hagrid got a dragon's egg so easily. I mean, besides Hagrid, who would walk around with a dragon's egg in their pocket? So we went down to Hagrid's and we find out that he told the stranger who got him the egg how to get past Fluffy! That's when we knew the stone was in danger. We tried to go to Dumbledore, but he wasn't there! We knew that Voldemort was scared of Dumbledore, so we figured if he was going after the stone, he'd do it that day, when Dumbledore wasn't at school. We tried to go to McGonnagal and tell her but she wouldn't listen. So…"

"So that's when you decided to let it all go and trust that the stone was well protected?" Sirius says hopefully.

Severus snorts before Harry has a chance to reply. "uhhh well no. We figured there were other things protecting the stone, but we had to do something! So Ron, Hermione and I took the cloak that night and went down the trap door. When we got there, there was a harp playing music and we realized someone had already gone down the trap door. We didn't think it'd be Voldemort, we thought it was Severus because of the way he'd been acting all year and the Quidditch incident. We thought he was getting it for Voldemort. Oh and Severus, I'm sorry we ever suspected you. I know better now, but at the time we didn't know you at all" Severus simply nods in acceptance of the apology, knowing that he was the most hated teacher for the Golden Trio.

Harry then proceeds to explain each of the protections, and how when he walked into the final room he realized it was Quirrell that was possessed by Voldemort. "When I was in the hospital wing afterwards, Dumbledore explained that I couldn't touch Quirrell because of my mother's love protection. He also told me that only someone who wished to get the stone, but not use it, would be able to get it out of the mirror. While that is pretty smart, the rest of the protections were pretty easy if three first years could get through them".

"I have to say I agree pup. While you shouldn't have been down there to begin with, the stone should have been better protected. Now I don't know about Remus and Severus, but I need to lay down. This story is just simply too much for me in one evening, and I have a terrible feeling that year two is just as bad. You can tell me that story tomorrow morning. Right now, I need you to go upstairs and get ready for bed".

Harry is surprised he's not even getting scolded for any of this, but a quick glance at Remus and Severus tells him that he's not quite off the hook yet either. He knows Sirius is just letting him go because he needs to think it over himself. Harry bids them all goodnight, and heads up to bed. Remus, Severus and Sirius soon follow, knowing that the next day is going to be a long one.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The next morning Harry doesn't want to get out of bed, but he knows that if he doesn't, someone will come get him. When he gets down to breakfast, Severus, Remus and Sirius are already there waiting for him. He notices that they all look a lot better, especially Sirius. Breakfast is a quiet affair and much too soon for Harry's liking Severus suggests they move to the living room to continue the story.

Harry tells the story of the summer before second year and the bars on the windows. He talks about the flying car and how the twins and Ron broke him out. He talks about flying the car to Hogwarts and goes through all the events with the Chamber of Secrets. By the time he is done telling everything, it is close to lunch time and Sirius isn't looking nearly as healthy anymore. They all laugh when Harry explains about Dobby blasting Lucius Malfoy, and now understand the attachment Dobby and Harry have. "I'd love to see that memory in a pensieve sometime, if you'd let me" Severus says with a smirk.

They all retreat to the dining room for lunch, but when Harry tries to leave when he's done Remus stops him. "Cub, come sit back down. I think it's high time we all sat down and talked." Grudgingly Harry sits back down, but he refuses to look at the adults in the room. He knows he's about to get scolded, and deep down he knows he's deserved it. "Cub, all those things were dangerous. Time and time again you put yourself in danger, which is not okay. We all love you, and we don't want the next few years to be anything like the first few years at Hogwarts. Now we know that this was all in the past, and it's not fair to punish you for it now, but maybe if we get you to think about it and see what you could have done differently, we might prevent any repeats. We also understand that not all of this was your fault, you didn't plan some of it and you did incredibly well in defending yourself from Voldemort several times, but we'd rather you thought about things a little bit more before jumping into danger. Your life is too precious to us to let you just put it in danger like that. Why don't you go up to your room and write an essay about why what you did was dangerous, and what you could have done differently in each instance instead of running into danger. We can discuss the essay later."

"Ok Remus, I can do that. I know what I should have done differently in each situation and it all comes down to the same thing each time. Can we just talk about it instead of me writing it down?"

"Cub, if you feel that you can explain it to us just as well now as you could on paper, than you most certainly can tell us now. This wasn't meant as a punishment."

"Well, the biggest thing in everything is that I need to ask for help when I need it. Growing up I was on my own, the Dursleys never did anything for me, so I learned not to ask for help and I learned not to trust adults. In all of these situations I should have trusted adults around me, and asked for help instead of trying to figure it out on my own. It won't be easy because it's not my first reaction to anything, but I know I need to work on that. Up until now, I didn't know what adults to trust. I thought I could trust Dumbledore, but after the Chamber incident I'm not so sure anymore. See, I started thinking after that and I realized that none of that should have been as easy as it was. I mean, no first years should have been able to get to the stone, and what are the odds of Dumbledore being out of the castle the same day that Voldemort tried to go after the stone? It makes me think that it was a setup, that Dumbledore wanted me to try to go after the stone. He knows everything that happens in the castle, so he had to have known that we were trying to figure out the mystery of the stone. And then in second year, all we ended up having to do to figure out where the entrance is was talk to Myrtle. Dumbledore was at Hogwarts when the Chamber was opened the last time, so why didn't he talk to Myrtle? Even if he needed a parseltongue to open it, he could have asked me to open it and then send some teachers down. Dumbledore is smart enough that he should have known. I don't know why, but it makes me think that once again Dumbledore wanted me to open the chamber. It's almost like he's testing me. I still should have gone to a teacher besides Lockhart when I realized I had opened the Chamber, but I never thought about it. That is also something that I've been thinking about. My whole life I've been trying to make decisions based on self preservation. I would duck if my uncle swung a fist at me. I would be quiet to avoid attracting attention. I would do my chores without complaining so that I'd get food. But suddenly when I'm at Hogwarts, I forget about self preservation, and I run head first into danger every time. Dumbledore never once checked on me in all those years at the Dursleys, but Mrs. Figg knew about how they treated me so Dumbledore had to have known. I'm not sure why he never checked on me there, but there has to be a reason" Harry explains.

When he is done talking, he looks up and sees all three men looking at each other. Sirius is the first to say anything after a few moments of silence. "Pup, you make a very good point. We know you understand what you should have done, and that is very mature of you. But your comment about self-preservation has me thinking. Why is that? Why did you suddenly change your reactions when you started school? I think we should go to Gringotts and have them do a magically cleansing. Do you know what that is?"

"No, what is it?"

"Well, normally you go to St. Mungo's for it, but Gringotts goblin healers can do it as well, and there is more privacy at Gringotts. Basically what they do, is they give you a potion that will clean your magic and your soul from all magical bindings and any compulsions that may have been placed on you. Depending on how many they are, you might black out for a while why it's working, but afterwards you are completely clean of all compulsions and bindings. With your comment on your behavior changing, I'm worried that someone might have placed a compulsion charm or given you a compulsion potion that is changing your responses."

"Okay, I'll go get my two way parchment and see if Ragnok can see us today to get this done. That really worries me that something could be altering my thoughts without me realizing it. I'll be right back" Harry returns a few minutes later and says that Ragnok has scheduled them for later that afternoon.

They all agree that they should all go with Harry, since they don't know how things will go, and they all want to make sure he'll be okay. "Pup, we have some time before we have to leave so we want to talk to you about something. We know you are emancipated, but you are only thirteen. I'm sure you agree that that is too young to be on your own, and you have expressed a few times already that you like having adults to take care of you. Usually when a minor becomes emancipated because they become a Lord, a guardian is assigned to raise the child until they become of age. The guardian is basically a parent, with the only exception that they can't make any legal or financial decisions for the child. We think you need that, especially after hearing all your stories. What do you think?"

"Sirius, I had already been thinking about that. I know I have all this responsibility now, and I've never been a normal child, but I really want to be. I want to have loving parents, and be able to be a kid without having to worry about everything. I know I don't know everything, so I'll need guidance. That's why I wanted you all to live with me, I know I need adults. I also know that I don't always think things through and will need someone to stop me and make me think about things. I know Malfoy probably gets pretty much everything he wants, and I don't want to end like him."

"I'm happy to hear you say that pup. Now what you need to understand is that if you want us to be your guardians, there will be rules that you have to follow and consequences if you break those rules. Legally Remus can't be your guardian because he is a werewolf. The fact that he is isn't widely known because nobody told on him at the end of last year, but we can't risk anyone finding out, especially with him returning to Hogwarts this fall to teach DADA. However, Severus will be your legal guardian, and as soon as I get cleared after the trial so will I. But there is something else you need to know.

See, since Remus is a werewolf, he has a mate. Not all werewolves find their mates, but Remus did when he was still at Hogwarts. I know you read those books on werewolves when you found out about Remus, so I know you know what that means. Remus' mate, once they have completed the bond, is basically like his husband. What we never told you pup, is that I'm Remus' mate. Being separated from me for twelve years was really hard on Moony, and now that we are back together, Moony wants to renew the bond. We are getting to know each other again before we renew the bond, but once we do, Moony will be my alpha and I will be part of Moony's pack. As his best friends, your parents were also part of his pack. As my alpha, Moony can set rules and consequences for me as well. Before I went to Azkaban that was how it was. I didn't have many rules, because we are both adults, but the main thing was that I couldn't put myself or others in danger or do anything to hurt my health in any way. I'm also not allowed to play pranks on him; he doesn't care if I play them on others as long as I don't hurt anyone or put anyone in danger. Since you are my child in Moony's eyes, you will be considered his cub as well. That means you are part of his pack. Do you understand what that means?" Sirius asks.

"I think so. That means that even though Remus won't be my legal guardian, I'm still part of his pack because he is bonded to you, and because of that he is as much my parents as you and Severus will be?"

"Exactly Harry. The wolf inside me, Moony, considers you his cub. I consider you like a son." Remus responds.

"I'm okay with that Remus. I want you to be part of my life. So what are these rules you guys keep mentioning?" Harry responds.

Severus decides to jump in. "How about I explain those. They are really very simple. We want you to have enough space to be yourself and have fun, while at the same time keeping you safe and happy. You are not allowed to put yourself or others in danger. Don't lie to any of us. Be respectful to those around you, especially adults. Don't do anything to endanger your health, and if you are hurting or not feeling well, let one of us know. Watch your language. Those are very basic, and we might add some later if we feel they are necessary. The consequences will vary based on the seriousness. For disrespect we might send you to your room to calm down for a bit, and for telling a lie we might wash out your mouth with soap. However, if you put yourself, others or your health in danger the punishment will be more severe. It could be anything from getting grounded to getting a spanking." Severus explains calmly.

At the word spanking Harry's eyes grow wide. "You'd really spank me?"

Severus, understanding the reaction calmly replies. "Yes, but only for the more serious offences. You might occasionally get a smack on your bum as a warning that you are about to cross the line, but a spanking is saved for serious rule breaking."

"Alright, I might not like it, but that is what having parents is. It'll be nice to have you all around, but I know I need rules so that I can learn to be the child my parents would have wanted me to be. I mean, if James and Lily were still alive I'm sure I'd have lots of rules as well, so this is really not any different. We should get ready to go soon; we have about thirty minutes before our appointment. I need to change into robes before we leave. Also, once we are done, can we go shopping? I want to burn all my clothes from the Dursleys and get good clothes that actually fit. I need every day robes, dress robes, pants and shirts. Probably some new jeans too but we have to go into muggle stores for those."

Sirius is smiling, knowing how excited Harry must be to be able to get out of those baggy hand me downs. "Sure pup, we can do that after your appointment if you feel up to it. If not, we will go a different day. Now keep in mind that I will have to wear a glamour before we leave."

"Off course Sirius. I wouldn't want you to get arrested so close to your trial date!"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Harry, Sirius, Severus and Remus arrive at Gringotts right on time, and Ragnok leads them through several hallways to a private room. Upon entering, they notice it looks like a small infirmary, and Harry sits down on the bed. They wait a few minutes and another goblin comes. "Lord Potter-Black, I am Healer Goblin Thag. I will be testing for binding and compulsions, and administer the potion if needed. Would you like for Mr. Black, Mr. Snape and Mr. Lupin to remain in the room or would you prefer they wait outside?"

"I'd like for them to stay in the room Healer Thag"

"As you wish Lord Potter-Black. Please lay back on the bed and we can get started." Harry lays back on the bed, shivering slightly because of nerves. "Lord Potter-Black, I am going to administer this first potion. This potion will determine if there are any compulsions or bindings. The results will appear on this parchment. Once we know if there are any, we will know if there are any we need to remove. Please try to lay still, I will let you know as soon as we get results. Mr. Black, Mr. Snape and Mr. Lupin, please have a seat over there." Healer Thag gives Harry the potion, and they all patiently wait.

About ten minutes later, the parchment finally stops moving and Healer Thag starts reading though it. "Lord Potter-Black, this took longer than I expected. You have about five different compulsions on you. Three are charms and two are potions. Also, you have two magical binds. What these bindings do, is they limit the amount of magic you can use and they might even limit some other magical abilities. The compulsions are varied, and we can't tell exactly what they are for. However, you might notice a difference in your behavior and reactions to things once they are removed, which will tell you what they were. We can administer another potion that will tell us the magical signature of each person that placed a compulsion or binding if you'd like for me to do that first?"

Sirius, Severus and Remus are all looking at Harry in shock. They expected some compulsions, but not this many and they definitely weren't expecting any magical bindings. Binding a wizard's magic is a serious offense, and is not taken lightly. "Yes Healer Thag, please give me that potion. I want to know who did this to me."

"Very well Lord Potter-Black. Please take this potion, and we will wait until the parchment updates with the magical signature."

This time they don't have to wait as long. A few minutes later, the parchment has updated and Healer Thag has made a copy for each of them. He also automatically updates Harry's file with a copy and has a copy sent to the Black vaults. "Lord Potter-Black, as you can see, Albus Dumbledore placed all of them. It looks like the bindings were placed when you were a baby, and most of the compulsions were placed at age eleven. I have sent a copy to the Black vaults in case you need a copy to be kept safe, should you wish to press charges. Now, because there are so many to remove, it will take about thirty minutes and you will likely black out. Here is the potion, take it when you are ready."

"Thank you Healer Thag. Sirius, Severus, Remus, I love you guys. See you in thirty minutes!" For the adults in the room, the thirty minutes appear to be crawling by. They are all worried something will go wrong, but they trust the healer to know what he is doing. Healer Thag remains calm throughout.

Thirty-five minutes later Harry finally starts to wake up. It takes another five minutes before he is fully aware of the room around him. "Lord Potter-Black, welcome back. You might feel a little dizzy for a few more minutes, but please try to sit up. Since you had magical bindings removed, we need to test your magic. Once you no longer feel dizzy, please try to stand as we will have to move to the room next door for this."

Slowly Harry sits up, but it takes another fifteen minutes before he feels well enough to stand.

The group moves to the room next door. Upon walking in, they realize there is nothing in this room except a few pillows, a desk and a chair. "Lord Potter-Black, please take out your wand and try to levitate that pillow over there."

Harry draws his wand, and tries to levitate the pillow. However, instead of it simply levitating, it shoots straight at the ceiling and explodes. Harry jumps in shock, and looks up at the others with a sheepish look on his face. "Sorry about that, I didn't do anything different than normal".

"That is alright Lord Potter-Black, I expected this. It appears the bindings were rather strong, and your magical strength has increased. Why don't you practice for a while, and once you are comfortable with how much magic to use for the pillow, you can move on to the chair and desk."

While Harry is practicing, the adults quietly discuss the sudden increase in magic. They all realize that Harry will need to be trained to control his magic, but they also need to test him for any other magical abilities that might have appeared. They are happy that Harry no longer has the trace on his wand because of the emancipation, and that Black Manor has a lot of space for them to practice without destroying anything. It takes Harry about fifteen minutes before he successfully levitates the desk.

Sirius turns to Harry. "Well done Harry! We'll have to practice a lot at home this summer to control your magic, but also to see if any other abilities have appeared that you were unaware of. Healer Thag, is there a way to test how strong his magic is?"

"Absolutely Mr. Black. I can run a scan, and it will tell me how strong it is based on the color that appears above Lord Potter-Black. Lord Potter-Black, may I cast the scan?"

"Yes Healer Thag, please do".

Healer Thag casts the scan, and a bright green ball appears above Harry. None of them know what that means, but Healer Thag appears pleased. "That is excellent! To give you an idea of colors, the brighter and happier the color, the stronger your magic. For comparison, most average wizards are at a red or dark orange. Albus Dumbledore is a darker green. Lord Potter-Black, very few wizards are stronger than Albus Dumbledore. This color shows your magic now and while it might not change too much, if you discover certain abilities it might get stronger. Things like being a metamorph, being able to do elemental magic, and being able to do wandless and wordless magic can make your magic stronger. It works a lot like muscles in your body. They are there and don't change, however, you can make them stronger by exercising. Average daily movement won't change them much, but harder more rigorous exercise will make them stronger and bigger. Magic works the same way. Average daily use of your magic won't make it stronger or less strong. But once you do harder and more rigorous magic, it will make it stronger. Right now, your magic is only slightly stronger than Albus Dumbledore. In fact, I have not heard of anyone getting a bright green since the founders of Hogwarts! That doesn't mean you can defeat him if you battle with him now. You don't know many spells, and you aren't trained. It just means that with the right training, you will be an incredibly powerful wizard."

They all look at Healer Thag in shock at this explanation. "Harry, we will get your training started as soon as possible" Sirius says. "We will find out if you have other abilities. Also, I think it would be good if you learned to control your emotions and learn something called Occlumency. With that much raw power, if you lost control of your emotions or temper you could destroy something or seriously hurt those around you. We know you don't want that, and I'm sure Occlumency will help."

Severus is nodding at this. "Yes Sirius, Occlumency will help. I'm a master Occlumens. I can hold my shields against both Dumbledore and the Dark Lord. If you want to learn, I'd be more than happy to teach you as it will be necessary for you to learn before you go back to Hogwarts. Sometime this week, we will explain how it works to you Harry, and I'm sure the library at Black Manor has many books on the subject."

"Thank you Severus, if it is something you all think I need to learn, than I will learn it. Knowing that my magic is that strong, I need to learn as much as possible. I realize that my slacking off the past three years has not done me any good, and I need to work harder. Healer Thag, is there anything else you need?"

"No Lord Potter-Black, you are free to leave. If you have any further questions, please let me know and I will be glad to assist you."

"Thank you Healer Thag. Let's go Sirius, Remus and Severus. I'm ready to go shopping!"

They all smile at Harry's excitement, and after casting glamours over Severus (they don't want anyone to report to Dumbledore that he is seen with Remus and Harry) and Sirius, they step onto Diagon Alley. Their first stop is Madam Malkins. As soon as they walk in, Sirius starts rattling off a list to Madam Malkin herself of all that they need after sending Harry towards the dressing room to get measured. "We need 6 trousers, Two black, two blue and two grey. We need 6 shirts. Two white, one dark green, one emerald green, one dark red, one black and one dark blue. Matching ties for each shirt. 6 everyday robes, three black, one dark green, one dark red and one dark blue. Socks and underpants. One set school shoes, one set black everyday shoes, one set black dress shoes, one set grey dress shoes. Six school robes, tailored to fit. Six school uniforms, tailored to fit. Three belts, one black, one blue and one grey. Three cloaks. One light weight, one middle weight and one winter. Also, one pair of black dragon hide boots. Two Gryffindor scarfs, two winter hats and two sets of gloves. One set of Dark green dress robes, one set of dark red dress robes and a set of black dress robes. I want them all battle build. Also, I want four black under robes. Two with the Potter crest woven in, two with the Black crest. The dress robes I want the Black crest, Potter crest, Gryffindor Crest and Peverell Crest on each set. Am I missing anything Remus or Severus? His jeans, trainers and t-shirts we'll get in Muggle London after we are done here."

Remus and Severus are looking shocked at the huge list Sirius has just rattled off. "No, I think you covered everything. If need be, we can come back. Why are you having the dress robes battle build?" Severus responds.

"Because they are easier to move in, and provide better protection against a lot of spells. I'd rather get that done now, than regret not doing it later." "

Alright, that makes sense. Let's have a seat and wait for her to get Harry measured for everything".

"Actually, I'm not done. Madam Malkin, do you have an assistant that can help me?"

"Off course sir, Ms. Stephens will be glad to help you with what you need. I will be by the dressing rooms if you need me" Madam Malkin says smiling. She is excited to be able to create what appears to be a whole new wardrobe!

"Ms. Stephens, my friend Mr. Lupin here is in need of some new outfits. He needs six everyday robes, six shirts, six trousers, ties, socks and underpants, at least one set of dress shoes and one set of everyday shoes. Two sets of dress robes, three cloaks (Light weight, middle weight and winter), a scarf, a hat and gloves. He can tell you the colors he prefers. And no Remus, don't look at me like that. I will take care of this. You need new robes so let me spoil you a little bit."

Remus looks disgruntled but knows that it is not worth the argument. "Thank you. You know I don't like buying all these clothes, and it's unusual for me to be able to afford it. I prefer black, blue and brown. The dress robes one black, one dark blue. The everyday robes two of each with the shirts, ties and pants matching. Cloaks, scarf, hat and gloves all in black please." After Remus is done telling Ms. Stephens what he wants and she has measured him for everything, the three men sit down in the waiting area.

A few minutes later Harry joins them. It takes about an hour, but then Madam Malkin appears with a shrunken package for Harry and one for Remus. Before Sirius can get out of his chair, Harry walks up to the register and pays for both, and they all walk out of the store. "Don't even try arguing with me, I'm just happy to be able to afford my own clothes for once. And Remus, you deserve good clothes. Sirius, once you are cleared, we are coming here and I'm getting you a whole new wardrobe" Harry says with a smile on his face.

"Severus, do you happen to know Harry's booklist for the coming year? Maybe we can get the books now which will prevent us from having to come back when it's packed with other students, and Harry might be able to get a head start." Remus asks with a sideway glace to Harry, who doesn't appear upset by this suggestion.

"Yes I do Remus, and that is an excellent idea. Let's head to Flourish &amp; Botts and get the books. We might be able to pick up some extra books that will help with the extra training as well." They all walk into the bookstore, and Severus takes the lead. "You two go look for books that will help with extra training. You know what we need. I'll help Harry find his school books and then we'll join you."

Sirius and Remus head to the defense section and start looking for spell books and general books on defense that they feel are useful for Harry. Severus and Harry head to the schoolbook section, and start gathering his fourth year books. When Severus reaches for a Divination book, Harry stops him. "Severus, I haven't said anything to anyone yet, but I want to start taking my studies more serious. I just took Divination because Ron was taking it, but it's a waste of time. All she does is predict my death. I'd rather take Ancient Runes or Arithmancy. Do you think if I spend the rest of the summer studying the third year material, I'll be able to pick that up in fourth year?"

"Harry, I think that is very mature. I never understood why students would take Divination. It's not something you can learn. I don't think you should pick up both classes for fourth year, and I would recommend you take Ancient Runes. It is very useful when creating wards, and carries over to a lot of other forms of magic. If you want to learn Arithmancy, I know Sirius is good at it and I'm sure he'd teach you if you asked. Why don't we get the books for both for third and fourth year. Remus and I can teach you third year Ancient Runes so that you are ready for fourth year. Then maybe throughout fourth year, we will start on third year Arithmancy if time permits."

"Thank you Severus! That would be wonderful. Hermione was always saying how interesting Ancient Runes was last year, and I regretted not taking it at times. I wonder if taking Divination was part of the compulsions, because it just doesn't make sense to me now why I would take it just because Ron took it. I already have all my other classes with him!"

Harry and Severus finish gathering all the school books and go looking for Remus and Sirius. They have a huge stack of books in their arms. "Are you buying the whole store?" Harry says jokingly.

"Well Pup, you can never have too many books. This plus what we have in the library at Black Manor, and what is probably at Potter Manor, you will be able to look up just about anything! We didn't get any books on Occlumency, as I'm sure those are already in the library. When I was younger I was trained in it, and I know the books came from the library at the manor so I'm sure they are still there. Do you have everything?"

Severus looks over the stacks and then towards the potions section. "Actually, if you don't mind I'd like to get some books from the potions section. Harry, I know I wasn't the best teacher for you over the years, but I'd like to rectify that. I'll go get some good reference books for you, and I'll re-teach you everything from the first three years so that you won't be behind anymore. You guys go ahead to the register, I'll be right there."

By the time the clerk gets done ringing up all the books, Severus has returned with several more. Harry pays for everything, once again ignoring that Sirius is trying to pay, and the clerk shrinks the packages so they can easily be put in Harry's pockets. They all walk through the Leaky Cauldron and out into Muggle London. "Harry, we are your guardians. We should be paying for your books and clothes." Sirius says disgruntled.

"Sirius, I have more than enough money to pay for this. Please, let me do this. I know normally parents pay for this, and I know you can afford it, but I like being able to buy things for myself. I'll let you pay for the muggle clothes, how about that?"

"Fine Harry, but I'm also paying for lunch! And if you are good I might even get you ice cream after" Sirius says while ruffling Harry's hair. Remus and Severus smile (or in Severus case, pretend not to smile) at the banter between the two.

They walk through the streets, and soon enter a huge department store. Sirius tells Harry to get anything he sees that he wants, and Harry walks off to the racks with jeans. "Guys, I think we should all get some muggle clothes. We never know when we might need some. I think we should have at least two muggle outfits for when we need to go out into muggle areas." Sirius says to Remus and Severus. They both agree, and soon they are all heading in different directions to get outfits for themselves.

Sirius decides to keep it simple, and grabs a pair of jeans, a pair of trousers and two shirts. He also gets a pair of trainers, knowing they are more comfortable than wizard shoes.

Remus decides he doesn't understand why anyone would wear jeans and gets two pairs of trousers and two shirts.

Severus, used to wearing black, gets exactly that. He gets two black trousers and two black shirts and one t-shirt. He also gets a black leather jacket. None of them are surprised by any of the other men's choices.

When they all get back to where they've left Harry, he is already walking towards them with his arms overflowing. They see a variety of jeans, trousers, shirts and t-shirts in variety of colors and prints. He also has several pairs of shorts, and two pair of trainers. "I see you all got clothing too, I was going to suggest that. Are we ready?" Harry asks, still smiling from being able to pick out his own clothes.

They all head to the register, where Sirius informs the lady at the register that he wants to pay for everything together, but he wants each person's clothes in a separate bag. It takes a good half hour for them to get checked out, but finally they have everything in bags and Sirius has paid. As promised, Harry has let him and hasn't tried to step in. When Sirius pays, Harry realizes that he didn't even have muggle money on him, so it's a good thing Sirius had thought to exchange some at Gringotts. Once outside the store, and into an alley behind it, Severus shrinks all their bags and they put them in their pockets.

After a bit of an argument, they decide on Italian for dinner, and start walking towards a restaurant they saw along the way. When they are shown to their table, Harry sits down with a deep sigh. When they all look at him, trying to hide their amusement, he smiles. "Shopping is exhausting! It is really nice to finally get things that fit, but I don't think I could do this very often! I'm glad to sit down for a bit." The other men all nod in agreement, and before they know it they are all tucking into their dinner.

After dinner, they notice that Harry is starting to doze off, and they quickly pay the bill and walk to an alley near the restaurant. From there, they apparate Harry home. Harry doesn't even make it up the stairs. He walks over to the couch, sits down, and is asleep within minutes. Sirius looks at him fondly. "He is exhausted. We'll just leave him there for a bit. Dobby!" "Yes sir, how may Dobby help you sir." "Dobby, please take the packages out of Harry's coat. All the books can go to the library, and all his clothes can be put away in his wardrobe. Please get rid of all his other clothing that's already there. All the school uniforms and school robes can be put in bags. I'll take those to Madam Malkins for credit and she can sell them second hand. All his cousin's hand me downs can go in the trash. Also, please take Remus packages and put his clothes in his wardrobe"

"Yes sir, Dobby will do this sir." Dobby pops away with all the packages, and the men sit down on the remaining couches and chairs. As soon as they do, a tea set pops onto the table in front of them and they all gratefully prepare a cup of tea.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The following morning at breakfast, Severus looks at Harry and says "Harry, how much of your summer homework have you completed and what do you still have left to do? We have about a week left until your birthday, and after that only a month until school starts."

"I've done History of Magic, I still have Charms, Transfiguration, DADA and Potions left to do." Harry replies. He realizes that he's going to be told to get those done first, and he is glad he had already decided to do that. "I decided I need to get those done first, so that they are out of the way. That way we can focus on new things after my birthday and I won't have to scramble to get these done."

"That is a good idea Harry. Why don't you spend today getting those done, while we think about a training schedule for the remainder of the summer." Severus says, happy that Harry doesn't have to be told to get his homework done. Sirius is smiling throughout this exchange. "Plus pup, with you in the library doing homework, we can plan your birthday! It's not every day you turn fourteen, we need to make sure to celebrate! What do you normally do on your birthday?"

"Well, at the Dursleys we never celebrated. I usually stayed up until midnight to wish myself a happy birthday, and once I started at Hogwarts I'd get some gifts from friends, but that's about it. I've never had an actual party, and I'd have to open my gifts in secret since the Dursleys didn't want owls to come to the house so they came at night."

"Well that is not acceptable. This year you will have a birthday party! We will find a way to get everyone here without revealing the location of Black Manor, and we will have fun! And you will get to open gifts in front of everyone and not worry about anything! Who do you want to invite?" Sirius says, already starting to plan everything in his head.

"Well we can invite all the Weasleys, Hermione, Neville. Do you think Hermione's parents and Neville's grandma would like to come? Maybe Dean and Seamus. I'd like to invite Luna. I met her briefly earlier last year and she seemed nice. She didn't seem like she has a lot of friends." Harry says, thinking hard. "I'm sure if we invite all of them, we might as well invite all the parents too. That way you guys can get to know some of my friends' parents as well."

"I will get started on the invitations pup. That is very nice that you want to invite Luna, even though you don't know her well. We will get started on that and find a way to get everyone here, while keep this location hidden. Maybe personalized portkeys, with a charm so that after the party when they leave they remember the party, but not where the party was. We'll make it work, and you'll get your party! Why don't you go get started on your homework, and leave us to planning. If you have any questions or need help, come find one of us."

"Alright Sirius, I'll go do that. Please don't go overboard with the planning! I don't like big crowds with all their attention on me." Harry says while getting up from the table.

Once Harry is out of the room, Sirius summons parchment and a quill and starts writing out ideas. Remus and Severus just exchange a glance, knowing that Sirius is going to go overboard. They both decide to just let him plan it, knowing that it is Sirius' way of making up for twelve missed birthdays. Remus still remembers Harry's first birthday party, and how excited Sirius was at it and he knows that Sirius will be just as excited at this one.

"I need to stop by Hogwarts today. I'm sure Dumbledore is wondering where I went. I will just let him know that I was looking for some books that I knew I had but couldn't find, and that I needed a break away from the castle. I'll tell him I've decided to stay at the house my parents left me for the remainder of the summer. I don't think he'll have a problem with that. I need to tell him something before he realizes I'm missing and starts searching for me." Severus says with a grim look on his face. He is not looking forward to seeing Dumbledore after everything he's found out, but he knows he needs to pretend like nothing is wrong.

"Why don't you go do that Severus. I can get started on some lesson plans for this coming year while you are doing that, Sirius is planning this party and Harry is doing homework. Maybe after lunch we can all three get together and see how we can find any unknown abilities in Harry, and discuss what we want him to learn the rest of the summer." Remus says. He already has several ideas, but is glad that he gets the morning to take it easy after the eventful days they've all had.

"That sounds like a good idea. Before I forget to you tell you and Sirius, Harry told me he is dropping Divination. He wants to take Ancient Runes instead, and he wants to get caught up with his year before school starts. We need to make sure we work that into his schedule. He also wants to learn Arithmancy, but we decided he can do that when he has time during the school year instead of adding more to his schedule. We didn't think he'd have enough time to get caught up with it as well since we only have a month left before school." Severus says while getting up from the table.

At this, Sirius looks up. "That is excellent! I was going to mention that to him anyway since I think Divination is a waste of time for him. I'm assuming you got the third and fourth year books for those subjects?

"Yes, we did. Now, I really have to leave if I want to be back here for lunch. If I'm not back by lunch, I will send a patronus to let you know when I'll be back. Feel free to start without me this afternoon if I'm not back in time." With those parting words, Severus summons his cloak and apparates away.

Remus summons his lesson plans and heads to the library to keep Harry company, while Sirius gets back to planning Harry's party. He wants to make sure it is perfect! Severus ends up not coming back until after supper, and Remus spends the whole day working on lesson plans. They all knew that Severus had told them to go ahead and get started on planning, but there were plenty of things for them to all stay busy so they decide to wait. None of them complain about having an un-eventful day. Harry got all his homework with the exception of potions done, and Remus got most of his lesson plans updated for the new year. Neither of them were exactly sure what Sirius was up to all day since he was being very secretive, but he spent a lot of time with the house elves. They just assume that he is still planning Harry's party.

After supper they all retire to the sitting room and relax around the fire. Harry is lying face down on the floor in front of the fire reading a Quidditch book he got at Flourish &amp; Botts the day before, Sirius is scribbling on a piece of parchment and Remus is reading a book. An extremely tired looking Severus walks in. "Well, that didn't go exactly as planned. Dumbledore accepted my excuse, but then he kept me busy the rest of the day. Turns out there is going to be a big event at Hogwarts this year and he wanted my input on security. And before you ask, I can't tell you what it is. Remus, you will find out at the staff meeting before school starts. Harry, you will find out at the Welcoming Feast. I think it is a really bad idea to have this event, but they won't listen to me, so I spent the rest of the day trying to improve the security that was severely lacking." Severus sinks down on the couch and gratefully accepts the cup of tea Dobby hands him.

"Oh come on Severus, I won't tell anyone if you tell me! What is going to happen? Please?" Harry says. He even throws in the puppy dog eyes, hoping it will help.

Severus hides his amusement at that look. "No Harry, I will not tell you. And that look on your face is not going to make me change my mind, the puppy dog eyes don't work on me."

"Oh come on Severus, you can't just tell us it's big and you think it's a bad idea and then not share! Now I have to wait over a month to find out!" Harry pouts.

"Harry, I said no. When I say no, I mean no, so drop it. And I don't want you bringing it up again. I wanted to explain why I was so late getting back, and so now you understand if I have to go to Hogwarts occasionally if Dumbledore needs me, but I will not tell you anything else." Severus replies. He is no longer amused, and really hopes Harry lets it go because he is not in the mood for any whining.

"That's not fair! If you didn't want me to know anything you should have kept your mouth shut!" Harry half shouts while slamming his book closed and standing up.

Severus is now full on glaring at Harry. He gets up from the couch to stand in front of Harry. "Harry James! Don't you dare raise your voice at me, and that was really disrespectful. You better change your attitude right now." The look on Severus' face tells Harry that he should drop the attitude and let it go, but when he gets wound up like that, he doesn't always think before saying things.

"I don't have an attitude! I just don't think it's fair!" For good measure, Harry even adds a stomp of his foot on the word fair. As soon as he's said it, he realizes he's gone too far. If he was being honest with himself, he would say that he didn't even know where that came from. But before he has a chance to apologize, Severus has grabbed him by the arm and turned him sideways. The next second he feels Severus' hand crashing down on his backside in a sharp smack.

"Go up to your room right now. You can sit up there and calm down. I will be up in a little bit and we can talk calmly about this, but we are not going to sit here and listen to the attitude you currently have"

Harry, still in shock from getting a smack, rubs his backside briefly before running up the stairs to his room. He feels like slamming his door, but decides against it. He knows it won't help anything, and might just make things worse. He lies down on his bed, thinking about what just happened. He knows he was already frustrated after doing homework all day, especially because he spent two hours trying to do his potions essay and not understanding any of it. He knows he should have asked for help, but Severus wasn't there and he didn't even think about asking Remus or Sirius until he had already stared at his book for two hours. He knows he's in a bad mood, and he knows he shouldn't have lost his temper.

Downstairs, Severus sits back down on the couch with a weary sigh. He looks at Sirius and Remus who are looking concerned. "I know I should have tried to stay calm longer, but after the day I've had, the last thing I needed was his whining and his horrible attitude."

"Severus, you did nothing wrong. Every one of us would have sent him to his room if he had said that to us. I think he was in a bad mood already, and this just pushed him over the edge. He'll calm down, and in a little bit when you've both calmed down you can talk about it." Remus says, knowing that Severus needs the reassurance.

"Do you know why he was in a bad mood?"

"Not really. He ended up doing homework all day, and I could tell the last few hours he was getting increasingly frustrated with something, but he wouldn't say what it was. You might ask him when you go up there." Remus replies.

"Alright, I'll do that. Now that we are all here though, I had a great idea about how to see about the abilities Harry might have. We can check elemental magic by going outside and seeing if he can control any of the elements. I don't know if you noticed, but after he stood up and he was starting to lose his temper, his hair started moving as if there was wind blowing through it. That might be a sign of something. That never used to happen when he got angry before." Severus says after taking a long drink of his tea, which really helps him calm down.

Sirius is looking thoughtful at that. "You know, I remember a story that Harry told me where his aunt tried to cut his hair, and the next morning it had grown back! Harry has Black blood in him, and being a metamorph runs in the Black family. I don't know if we can really test him on that, besides asking him to focus on changing some part of his body and seeing if he can. I'm sure there is a book on it around here somewhere, I'll look for it. It might have just been accidental magic, he might not be a metamorph."

Remus is nodding his agreement to both suggestions. "With his power, I'm sure he can do both wandless and wordless magic, but I think we should get him more knowledge first before we focus on that. Right now I think it's more important that he expands his knowledge, before we make things harder. Plus we don't want him to appear to be too powerful when he goes back to school, so he'll still have to do everything with his wand in classes. Why don't we do the elemental magic tomorrow, and maybe the metamorph test if you can find that book? That should be plenty. I believe he still has one essay to finish and then he'll have his summer homework done. With that and those tests, he will have a busy day already and we want to make sure he has some fun too."

Severus and Sirius agree to this, and they all return to doing what they were doing before. Severus simply sits on the couch, sipping his tea in silence. About an hour later, he excuses himself and heads up to Harry's room. He knocks, and upon Harry's "enter" he walks in. He grabs the desk chair and sits down next to the bed, upon which Harry is still laying, staring at the ceiling. "Harry, the way you spoke to me was very disrespectful. Sometimes there are things you can't be told. We don't withhold information that is important for you to know. Also, in the magical world there are sometimes charms placed on certain pieces of information that prevent the information from being told to someone who doesn't already know about it. There was no charm this time, but you have to keep in mind that if someone doesn't tell you something, they usually have a good reason. Do you understand that?" Severus starts, speaking softly and calmly.

"Yes Severus I understand. I know I was being disrespectful. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I was already in a bad mood, and I guess that just pushed me over the edge." Harry says, looking contrite.

"Do you want to talk about why you were in a bad mood?"

"Well I did homework all day, and I had everything done except potions. But when I tried to start the essay you assigned, I didn't understand any of it! I started getting frustrated, and by then it didn't even occur to me to ask Remus or Sirius for help and you weren't there. After about two hours we went to dinner, and I didn't even have the first sentence written! It was just really frustrating and it put me in a bad mood because I wanted to show all of you that I could be serious and get all my homework done."

"Harry, it's alright if you don't understand something. The homework is there for you to learn. Remus and Sirius would have been happy to help you. We are proud of you for working so hard today, even if you didn't get it all done. I will help you understand the essay topic tomorrow, and you can write your essay. I know it's partially my fault, since I haven't been a great teacher to you in the past. But Harry, don't ever feel like you have to impress any of us. We are proud of everything you've done and are doing no matter what. Don't ever feel like something you do isn't good enough."

"Thank you. Deep down I know that, but it just takes me some time to get used to the fact that I now have people who care." Severus gets up from the chair, and gives Harry a hug at those words. Harry looks back at him in shock.

"What?"

"I never saw you for the hugging type. I always thought that was more Sirius and Remus." Harry replies with a grin.

"Well don't get used to it! It would completely ruin my image if I did it too often, and we wouldn't want to spoil you now would we" Severus says, trying to hide his smile, happy that Harry is in a better mood.

"That would be bad, I agree. Imagine if everyone knew you hugged me! Your reputation would be gone." Harry giggles.

"All joking aside, you look tired. I want you to go get ready for bed and then go to sleep. You could use a few extra hours of sleep tonight. Understood?"

"I guess. It's too early to go to sleep, but I guess this is my punishment, isn't it?"

"No Harry it's not. The smack on your bum and being sent to your room was your punishment. I honestly think you could use a few extra hours of sleep. Tomorrow we are going to start testing your abilities, and you need to be well rested for that."

"Okay, I'll go to bed. But keep in mind that I'm going under protest." Harry says while getting up off the bed and heading towards his bathroom.

"Duly noted. Good night Harry. I'm sure Sirius and Remus will be up to say goodnight soon."

"Goodnight Severus."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The next morning after breakfast, they all head outside. It is a beautiful day, and perfect to test elemental magic as there is plenty of sunlight, no rain and no wind.

"Harry, elemental magic is something that only a select few wizards can do. Most wizards who can do some elemental magic, are strong in one element, but not so much in the others. For instance, The Dark Lord was good at controlling fire, while Dumbledore is good at controlling water and wind. There is also earth. I know the founders of Hogwarts were all elemental wizards, and they could all control at least one element, if not all. What we'd like to see is if you can control any of them. Don't get discouraged if you can't, and don't get discouraged if you can do some but not others. It is not something you can learn, it is inherent in your magic. That means that if you have the ability to control earth, you can control earth. Once you know you can, you can practice and get better at controlling and using it, but if you don't have the ability practicing won't help and you won't get the ability." Severus explains. "Does that make sense?"

"Yes, it does. I'm excited to see if I'm an elemental wizard! I think it would be really useful if I was able to control an element, especially since Voldemort and Dumbledore can both do it. So how do I find out if I can do it?" Harry replies with an excited grin on his face.

"The first thing you need to do is focus on the element you want to control. Let's start with fire. Do you know how to conjure a fireball, like the kind that Hermione conjured to set my robes on fire?"

"Yes, I do"

"Ok, go ahead and conjure it." Severus waits for Harry to conjure the flame. "Now focus your magic on the flame, and see if you can make it move or take another shape without saying any spells or doing anything else."

Harry focuses on the flame, and at first nothing happens. He steps back, takes a deep breath to calm himself, and then tries again. This time he is able to make the flame bigger, and he sends it up in the air. "I did it, I did it!" Harry yells with excitement.

Sirius and Remus are both laughing at his enthusiasm. "Yes pup, you sure did! Now see if you can do anything else. You can use your wand to help send it in certain directions. If you want it to change shape, focus on the shape you want it to take on."

Harry once again takes a deep breath, and focuses on the flame again. He is planning on sending it up in the sky and have it take the shape of Padfoot's face. It takes him a minute, but then suddenly there is a small dog face in the sky!

"Well done Harry! It looks like you can control fire. I'm sure you are tired from doing all that, so let's take a quick break before we do the next one. You will have to practice this so that you can get better at it and it won't take as much energy or concentration. It will become second nature to you. However, we do not want you to practice any of the elements without one of us there, understood?" Severus adds sternly.

"Yes Severus, I understand. Dobby!"

"Master Harry, sir, how can Dobby help you?

"Can we get some lemonade and biscuits? Thank you Dobby!"

A few seconds later a tray with lemonade and biscuits appears on a low table in the yard. They all gratefully take some, and for a few minutes there is complete silence.

"So what element are we doing next, can we do water?" Harry says after gulping down his glass of lemonade.

"Calm down cub, we are not in a hurry. We have all day to do this, and we don't want to exhaust your magic so early in the day" Remus replies, smiling at Harry's excitement. He completely understands why Harry is so excited, especially after the success with fire.

"Pup, why don't we all walk over to the little pond? It is a few minutes' walk, and we can test water there." Sirius says.

They all walk over to the pond, and when they get there Harry immediately starts focusing on the water. Nothing happens for a few minutes, and he is starting to get frustrated. He steps back, and takes a few calming breaths, and then tries again. "It's not working! Do I need to do something different for water?" Harry asks with a pout.

"No, you should be doing the same thing. You can try using your wand, but it likely won't make much differences. Elemental magic is designed without a wand, since it existed before wands did. Keep in mind that you might not be able to control all elements, and you might not be able to control water. Don't get discouraged just yet." Severus replies.

Harry takes out his wand, and once again tries. The longer nothing happens, the more upset he gets.

"Pup, let's stop. I don't think you are able to control water. But that's ok. You can still control fire, so you are still an elemental wizard. I know you'd love to be able to control all of them, but it doesn't look like that's the case. Let's change to wind." Sirius says after putting a hand on Harry's shoulder.

"I guess, it would have just been wicked if I could have controlled them all! Oh well, let's do wind." Harry starts to focus his magic on creating wind. Pretty soon a light breeze is swirling around them. Harry then directs the wind to blow through the trees. Next, he directs the wind to pick up the (now empty) pitcher of lemonade and swirl it towards them. "Wicked!"

"Well done Harry! So you can control wind. That is a really useful skill to have, since you can manipulate a lot of things with wind. Are you getting tired or do you want to try earth?"

"I'd like to try earth. I'm starting to get a little bit tired, but after we do earth we can relax for a little while." Harry immediately stared at the plants surrounding the pond. Before any of them even realize that Harry is already starting, all the plants get uprooted. "I can do earth! This will make gardening so much easier since I won't have to get down on my knees!" Harry is beyond excited that he can control three of the four elements.

"Harry, that is excellent! However, you don't have to do any gardening, so why would you mention that?" Severus says

"Oh, I had to do all the gardening at the Dursleys. I didn't even think about the fact that we have elves to do it for us here." Harry replies with a shrug while starting to walk back towards the house.

"You did all the gardening? That has to be a lot of work!"

"Yes, I did all the gardening. I also did all the inside chores. I actually liked the gardening, because while I was out there they usually left me alone." Harry says.

"Pup, I think you need to tell us about your life at the Dursleys. We don't know much of what happened there, but the little things we've heard you say aren't good. Could you tell us about them?" Sirius says, sitting down on the sofa next to Harry.

"I don't like talking about them, but I know you want to know so I guess I'll tell you. They don't like magic, and they never wanted me. Dumbledore left me on their doorstep with a letter, and then never came back. Dudley had two bedrooms, and I didn't have any. My room was the cupboard under the stairs. They'd lock me in there at night, or whenever they needed me to stay out of the way. I never got gifts, and my clothes were Dudley's hand me downs. Since he is so much bigger than I, they were huge! I wasn't allowed to do better than Dudley at school, if I did I got punished. I couldn't have friends, because anyone that tried would get bullied by Dudley and his gang. They also had a game called "Harry Hunting" where they would chase after me, and if they caught me they would beat me up. I'm glad I was much faster than them, so it didn't happen too often. I had to do all the chores, inside and outside. I was not allowed to eat with them even though I cooked all the food, and would only get leftovers which wasn't much. If I didn't get my chores finished, or they thought up something else that I did "wrong", I would get punished." Harry is looking at his shoes while telling all of this.

"Oh Pup, how terrible! That is abuse! I can't believe Dumbledore didn't check up on you!" Sirius exclaims.

"Cub, how would they punish you?" Remus says, concerned. He has a feeling he is not going to like the answer.

"Well, it depends. Sometimes I'd get thrown into my cupboard without food or water for a few days. Aunt Petunia sometimes hit me with the frying pan, like the time when I was five and I burned the bacon because I couldn't see the top of the stove. Uncle Vernon would try to hit me, or shove me, or let Dudley beat me up. I learned to duck, and when I got a little bit older I could outrun Vernon and Dudley most of the times until they gave up"

"Dumbledore has a lot to answer to! Mrs. Figg had to have seen bruises or marks on you, and seen how small you were! Dumbledore had to have known that you were being abused, or at least not treated right and he did nothing!" Sirius says loudly. By now he is pacing in front of the couch.

"That is unacceptable. Harry, you will not have chores here unless it's a punishment. We have elves and you are busy enough as it is with all your extra training. Plus you are a child, and they treated you like an elf. Besides keeping your bedroom picked up and not leaving your things all over the place, we do not want you to do chores, understood?"

"Yes Severus, I understand."

"Harry, you do know that getting a smack on your bum or getting a spanking from one of us is different than the beatings you got at your relatives', right?" Remus says, concerned that Harry can't distinguish between the two.

"Yes Remus, I know it's different. They used to hit me for no reason until I learned to avoid it. If I get a spanking from you all it's because I've broken a rule." Harry says, blushing slightly at the mention of getting a spanking.

"Pup, let's go get lunch. Knowing that you haven't been properly fed for most of your life, we are going to make sure you eat enough! Severus, could you brew a nutrition potion? I think we should start adding that as well. How could they!" Sirius says while propelling Harry in the direction of the dining room.

While they are all eating lunch, Harry suddenly look at Remus. "Remus, why is there a light grey glow around you?"

Severus, Sirius and Remus look startled at this question. Harry starts to blush, thinking he's said something dumb.

"Cub, what do you mean a light grey glow?"

"Well, there is a glow around your whole body, it's light grey. But I can only see it when I focus my magic on you a little bit. As soon as I pull back my magic it disappears."

"Cub, what color are Severus and Sirius when you focus on them?"

"Sirius is white and Severus is also light grey"

"Cub, I think you can see magical auras. Everyone's magic has a color, the color determines how dark someone is. For instance, Sirius is white because his magic is pure. He hasn't performed any dark magic or rituals. Mine is light grey because I'm a werewolf. Werewolves are considered dark creatures, so my magic is not entirely pure. Severus is also light grey because he's done some dark magic. That is a topic for a different time though. The darker the aura, the more dark the magic. For instance, Voldemort probably has a black aura, since he did dark magic almost exclusively. Also, an aura can change based on intentions. So if you perform only light magic, but you perform it all with bad intentions, your auro will still get darker over time."

"That's really interesting. And that's useful that I can see that! Can everyone see magical auras?"

"No cub, most wizards and witches can't see them. It is very useful because it helps you determine what kind of person someone is."

Sirius, Severus and Remus are amazed that Harry has the ability to see magical auras. Severus looks thoughtful, thinking he might know of another ability Harry might have. "Harry, I'd like to test something. I want you to close your eyes, and I'm going to perform five spells. I want you to listen to them, and then after I'm done I want you to tell them if they were light, neutral or dark spells."

"Alright, I can do that."

Severus fires off five spells at the empty chair at the table, and then tells Harry he can open his eyes again.

"The first two were light, the third was dark, and the fourth was neutral and the last one light?" Harry says, unsure if that's right.

"That is correct! I had a feeling that since you can see magical auras, you might be able to feel the differences between spells. They are often combined abilities. This is very useful, because you can feel what type of spell is being sent your way without necessarily knowing what it is. Especially in battle, you won't always know all the spells being sent your way and this way you can feel if you should get out of the way or use a shield." Severus says.

"I'm finding out so many new things! This is really exciting." Harry says. "Can I go to the library and look up more information on all of this?"

"Sure Pup go ahead. Just to let you know, I have a meeting with Lord Peterson this afternoon regarding my trial. My trial is set for next week. He is coming here, and after I am done with him, he will need your memories and statement. We'll come find you in the library." Sirius says before Harry can run off.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Later that afternoon, Lord Peterson arrives by Portkey to go over Sirius' trial. After greeting Sirius, he looks around in interest.

"This is a beautiful home. All the original woodwork, combined with the lighter furniture and understated decorations are beautiful. I could see you spending a lot of time in this room."

"Thank you Lord Peterson. This is our living room. Usually we entertain guests in our parlor, but I assumed we'd prefer to be comfortable for this meeting as opposed to standing on propriety."

"That is perfectly alright. This might take a while. Why don't we get started by you talking me through the events of October 31, 1981?"

They both take a seat on the couches, and Sirius starts telling Lord Peterson about everything that happened that night. How he arrived at Peter's flat to realize he was missing, how he arrived at Godrics Hollow too late and went after Peter when he realized that Peter had betrayed them. He explains how he didn't blow up the street, and how Peter Pettigrew is an animagus. "I can prove that he is a rat animagus. I can show my memories of when he became an animagus and all the times he shifted. I can also provide the memory of the night in the shrieking shack in Harry's third year when Peter admitted to betraying James and Lily. Harry watched him transform back into a rat that night as well, so he will have those memories also."

"The fact that you were never given a trial will work in our favor, but it can also work against us. The Wizengamot isn't going to be convinced easily that they made a mistake. To get the trial off the books, they had to cancel the order to have you kissed when you are caught, so you can attend the trial yourself. Would you mind putting those memories in these vials so I can review them before the trial? Also, the ministry has your old wand, and we can request that they perform Priori Incantatum on it, which would prove that you did not blow up that street. I think with all of this, and with Harry's memories we have a really good chance at getting you free."

"I'll go get Harry, and you can get his story about the night in the shrieking shack and get his memories."

Sirius walks out of the room, and a few minutes later he returns with Harry. While he was gone he also had a fresh tea set sent in.

"Lord Peterson, it's good to see you again."

"Good afternoon Lord Potter-Black. I'm sure you have better things to do on this sunny day, but this won't take long. Could you recount the events on the night you encountered Mr. Black and Mr. Pettigrew at Hogwarts?"

Harry recounts all the events from that night, even including how he stunned Severus, fought off the dementors and freed Sirius.

"You fought off over a hundred dementors by yourself? That is truly impressive Lord Potter-Black. Most third years can't perform the Patronus charm at all, and most adult wizards would not be able to fight off so many on their own. Would you mind providing me with your memory of that night? Please don't leave anything out, this is just for me to review. They will ask you to provide a memory at the trial, at which time you should only provide the memory from everything that happened inside the shrieking shack, nothing that happened outside of it. They don't need to know you helped Mr. Black escape, and they don't need to know that Remus transformed in front of students."

Sirius shows Harry how to obtain the memory and place it in the vial provided by Lord Peterson.

"Lord Peterson, what day is the trial?"

"Lord Potter-Black, I was able to move the trial up to this Friday. I know Sunday is your birthday, and this way we'll get the verdict no later than Saturday. You should both arrive at Courtroom 10 no later than 7:30 AM on Friday. Mr. Lupin and Mr. Snape should both come with you, as extra protection. Also, if you arrive together it will show a united front. There will be a lot of press outside of the courtroom, but the trial itself is closed to the public. Mr. Lupin and Mr. Snape's presence can be explained as witnesses for the trial since it is possible they may be called as such."

"Thank you sir. We will make sure we are there on time. Is there anything else Harry or I can do before that time, or anything we should watch for on the day of the trial?"

"There is nothing else for you to do until the day of the trial. On that day, try to appear calm, no matter what happens. The prosecution might try to say that Lord Potter-Black has been influenced in some way. If for some reason the testimonies and memories aren't enough, I will call you both back to the stand to testify under veritasserum. I'd like to avoid that if possible, but if I feel it is needed, I will do so."

"Why would you want to avoid veritasserum?"

"Because I don't know what the prosecution might ask. If they decide to ask how you managed to get away from Hogwarts after being caught by dementors, it could implicate Lord Potter-Black and Ms. Granger in a crime. If at all possible, I'd like to avoid that."

"I understand. If there is nothing else, Harry and I will see you on Friday morning." Sirius says while standing up and extending his hand to Lord Peterson.

A few minutes after Lord Peterson has portkeyed out, Sirius and Harry are still standing in the middle of the living room.

"Sirius, I can't believe your trial is in two days. You will be a free man by the weekend!"

"Harry, it is possible they'll convict me somehow. It is not guarantee that I'll go free."

"I know, but we have so much evidence that shows you are innocent. I have to keep faith in the justice system, even though they wronged you thirteen years ago."

"I know Harry. I'd like to think I'll be a free man soon. I'm not sure what I'd do with myself!"

"Well tell you what, when you are free, I will help you play a prank on Severus to celebrate." Harry says with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Sirius looks at Harry, sees the glint, and starts smiling. "I see we might be able to turn you into a Marauder after all! Planning that prank will help me keep my mind off the trial, so I'm going to get started!" Sirius turns around and walks out of the room, already deep in thought.

Harry is smiling after him. Getting Sirius distracted was exactly what he was going for, and what better way than to mention pranking? He's perfectly aware that Severus won't like being pranked, but it's a small price to pay to see the happiness on Sirius face when he started planning.

The next few days go fast. Harry is working with Remus on Ancient Runes, while also reading the books on Occlumency Severus recommended. Off course Harry and Sirius spend a lot of time flying, and even Remus and Severus join them on occasion. When Remus catches Sirius and Harry in the library, heads close together, whispering about something and looking too innocent upon seeing him, he knows exactly what they are doing. He reminds them both sternly that whatever they are planning, Remus better not be the subject of it. Remus tries to get a look at their plans (once a Marauder, always a Marauder), but is unable to do so and decides that he'll likely find out soon anyway.

On the morning of July 29th, Harry and Sirius are a bundle of nerves. Severus tries to get him to calm down a little, while Remus is trying the same with Sirius. Neither are very successful, and soon it is time to leave. All four men are dressed in dress robes and look immaculate. As soon as they arrive at the ministry, they are crowded by press. The push their way through the crowds, with the three adults shielding Harry for the most part, and arrive at Courtroom 10 right on time.

The trial takes up most of the day, and in the end, neither Sirius nor Harry has to testify under veritasserum. It is 4 PM when they are done, and they are told to return at 6 PM for the verdict. They all decide to go somewhere to get something to eat before returning, while Lord Peterson returns to his office to do some paperwork. They settle on Muggle London, knowing they won't be able to talk in any Wizarding establishment.

"Sirius, I think it went really well. We gave our testimonies and they saw the memories. There is no way they can convict you now! Lord Peterson must have thought so too since he didn't ask for verittaserum."

"I agree with Harry. I think it went as well as it good have gone, and they'd be idiots to convict you now." Remus adds reassuringly. He can sense that Sirius is still worried.

"I know, but I'm still worried. I won't be able to breathe freely until after the verdict is read. I don't want to get my hopes up, only to have them squashed later!" Sirius says, looking downcast.

"I think we should talk about something else. Sirius, want to tell me what you have planned for my birthday?"

"I'm not telling you anything pup, it's a surprise!" Sirius says with a big grin. He is excited to see Harry's face when he realizes everything he has planned. "I promise it'll be the best birthday you've ever had, and all your friends have said they would come. Their parents are all coming as well, so we'll have a busy house."

"Even if we did absolutely nothing, I'm sure it would be the best birthday ever. I have you guys, and all my friends will be there! Plus I'm sure there will be cake. Everything is always better when there is cake." Harry says with a completely straight and serious face.

Both Remus and Sirius burst out laughing at this, and even Severus chokes back a laugh.

Before they know it, they are done eating and it's time to head back to the ministry. Once back in Courtroom 10, they all sit waiting, but none of them sit patiently.

The Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, finally stands up and starts going over a summary of the trial. Harry is just thinking that this seems pointless since they were all at the trial, when he hears the words he's been waiting for.

"On behalf of the members of the Wizengamot, we hereby pronounce Sirius Orion Black, cleared of all charges. Your records has been cleared, and you are a free man. Also, to compensate for the wrongful imprisonment, the Wizengamot is awarding Sirius Orion Black 100,000 galleons for each year of imprisonment for a total of 1,200,000 galleons. These funds will be deposited into your Gringotts account within a week's time. Also, there will be a full press release declaring you innocent in tomorrow's Daily Prophet, which will include a formal apology. If there is anything the Ministry can do for Mr. Black, please let us know."

As soon as Fudge sits down and they are adjourned, Harry jumps out of his seat and into Sirius' arms. The doors to the courtroom open, and bright flashes are immediately seen from the waiting press.

It takes them a good hour to get through the press and out to the apparition point, but finally they can head home. Once there, Dobby is already waiting with tea and a big cake. "Dobby made a cake for Master Paddy to celebrate Master Paddy's freedom."

They all grin at each other, and immediately settle down with tee and cake. A little while later, Harry leaves to go to bed, exhausted by the day's events. It doesn't take long for Sirius to go upstairs to wish him goodnight.

"Harry." Sirius whispers. "Come with me, we can go do our prank now. It will make tomorrow morning much more fun and I want to celebrate!"

Harry smiles, and gets out of bed. Harry, Sirius and Remus have private bathrooms attached to their rooms since they are both considered master suites, but Severus chose one of the bedrooms where the bathroom is across the hall. All their rooms are on that same floor, and it's the only bathroom on that floor so they know Severus always uses it. Knowing that Severus always checks the bathroom for spells before using it, knowing that he lives with two Marauders and the son of a Marauder, they know they can't use magic for their prank. They made small bags of Gryffindor red and gold paint, and after a bit of work, manage to get it up in the shower head. Simply looking at the shower head, you won't be able to tell there's anything different. They have designed the bags so that the break when they become warm, which will happen when the shower gets turned on for a few minutes. They sneak back to Harry's room.

"Severus is going to freak when halfway through his shower he suddenly turns red and gold!"

"Yes he is! How long will the paint take to wash off?"

"I spelled it to take 8 hours, and it can't be removed, so he'll be sporting Gryffindor colors for most of the day." Sirius replies with a grin.

Harry and Sirius simply sit there grinning at each other for a few minutes, both picturing Severus in red and gold.

The next morning, Harry is the first down to breakfast, and Sirius is soon to join him. Both are listening carefully for any sounds of movement upstairs. Soon they hear movement towards the bathroom, and the shower turning on. They both grin at each other. A few minutes later there is a loud scream, and both Harry and Sirius jump up and run up the stairs. Right when they get to the top of the stairs, they see Severus coming out of his bedroom, fully dressed and looking confused.

"Where did that scream come from?" he asks.

Harry and Sirius look at each other, then at Severus, then at the bathroom door and then back at each other. They are both starting to look a little scared, because if Severus isn't in the bathroom, that means only one other person can be.

"What is Remus doing in that bathroom?" Harry whispers to Sirius.

Before Sirius can answer, a fuming Remus steps out of the bathroom with just a towel around his waist. The prank worked perfectly, and Remus is covered in streaks of red and gold. He looks at Severus, who is staring at him with wide eyes, and then at Sirius and Harry, who both look guilty.

"I had to take a shower in here because the warm water wouldn't work in our bathroom, and this is what happens? I know this was intended for Severus, and I know you are both responsible for this!" Remus says, trying to remain somewhat calm. "How do I get this off, because knowing you it won't be with simple water!"

"You can't" Harry says softly, looking anywhere but at Remus.

"What did you say Harry?"

"He said you can't. It is spelled to stay on for eight hours and then disappear on its own" Sirius replies, also looking anywhere but at Remus. Both Harry and Sirius realize that while their prank worked, it worked on the wrong person and they are now both in trouble.

"Eight hours. I will look like this for eight hours." Remus says, starting to get even angrier. Severus is trying to inch back to his room, knowing that Remus is about to blow up at Harry and Sirius. "This is EXACTLY why I forbid you from playing pranks on me! I had a meeting with Dumbledore scheduled this morning because he wanted to go over my lesson plans for the coming year, which I now have to reschedule. I was also planning on stopping at Diagon Alley on my way back but now I can't even leave the house! You are both in a lot of trouble! Since I am stuck like this for eight hours, you can both go to your rooms for the next eight hours! I will be in to discuss this when I've calmed down."

Neither Harry nor Sirius has to be told twice, and they both quickly walk into their respective rooms. Remus looks at Severus, and lets out a deep sigh. "I don't know what I'm going to do with those two. A prank can be funny, but eight hours? That would completely disrupt anyone's day. What if you had been called in by Dumbledore. How would you explain this without revealing where you are staying?"

"I wouldn't have been able to go, and just say I'm sick or something. But then he would have wanted to send Madame Pomfrey. If this had happened to me, Harry would be grounded for the rest of the day and he'd be doing extra chores for a few days. I don't know how you discipline Sirius, but I've heard stories from others about how werewolf alphas use a firm hand to maintain discipline within their pack"

"I don't want to be too harsh on Harry, I know he was just trying to cheer Sirius up and I'm sure this was done in celebration. But I do want to get the point across that while pranks are fun, you need to think about the consequences for those you are pranking before you do it. And I deal with Sirius the way most alphas do. I know Sirius still has a lot to do for tomorrow, and I don't want to ruin Harry's birthday, so I'm going to let him continue with preparations after he spends some time thinking. And he'll be doing those preparations with a sore behind. Well, I'd better get dressed and head to breakfast. I'll have the elves send some up for Harry and Sirius. I'll see you after I've dealt with the two pranksters."

Remus walks back into the bathroom, and Severus heads downstairs for breakfast. Unknowingly, they are both thinking the same thing. While they think the prank was well thought out and funny, it's the eight hour timing that they have a problem with.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Harry is lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling thinking to himself. _He's worried. He knew he would get in trouble and that it was worth it. Seeing Remus covered in red and gold was hilarious! However, he also has to admit to himself that maybe the timed spell wasn't a good idea. Thinking about it, he understands why Remus is so upset over it, and they should have left that out. Now that he's admitted that to himself, all he can do is wait. What is Remus going to do? He was so mad earlier! It's been about an hour since he was sent to his room, surely he won't have to wait much longer?_ Right as Harry is thinking that, he hears Remus coming up the stairs. He feels his heart start to pound a little louder, but then hears Remus going into the room he shares with Sirius across the hall. He waits a few more minutes, but then realizes he can't stand the wait any longer and gets up. He walks to the door, and after hesitating, opens the door and walks into the hallway. He knows he's supposed to stay in his room, but he just has to talk to Remus! He walks over to Remus' bedroom door but before he can knock, he hears voices. He can't hear what is being said. _Should I interrupt?_ _Maybe that's not such a good idea._ Before Harry can even reconsider knocking, he suddenly hears the telltale sound of a spank. He jerks back his hand from the doorknob and stands in shock. _If Remus is spanking Sirius, then I will probably get one too!_

Before Harry has a chance to start panicking, he feels a hand on his shoulder. Looking around he sees Severus standing there. "Come on Harry, let's give them privacy and go back to your room."

They walk back to Harry's room, and Harry sits down on the couch, with Severus sitting down in a chair to his side.

"Harry, you were supposed to stay in your room. Remus didn't want you to hear that. You look scared and panicked. Want to talk about it?"

"I didn't mean to listen to them! I was getting worried and wanted to talk to Remus but before I could knock I heard them! I couldn't tell what they were saying, but I heard just enough to know that Remus is punishing Sirius. I don't want a spanking!" Harry replies. He is turning red and starting to hyperventilate slightly.

Severus walks over and puts an arm around him, trying to get him to calm down. "Calm down Harry. I don't think Remus is going to spank you. Sirius knew what his punishment would be, and he has agreed to it. Harry, I think we need to talk about something. Please don't interrupt me until I'm done, alright?"

Harry is starting to calm down a little, but is still worried. "Sure Severus" he quietly says.

"Harry, let me start by apologizing to you. I was mean and spiteful to you the past three years and I never really apologized. You didn't deserve the treatment you were getting from me. I knew I had to dislike you just in case I ever have to go back to spying, but I didn't have to be as mean as I was. I took my anger of your father out on you, and I'm sorry. Having spent this time with you this summer, I realize you are much more like your mother, but ultimately you are Harry. You are your own person, and I should treat you as such. Once I let go of my previous feelings, I was able to see you for the incredible boy you are. You have so much love to give to those around you. You wouldn't hurt a fly unless it hurt you first or was about to hurt someone you love. You have an incredible sense of doing what is right. You are also determined and stubborn, which are good traits to have because it will help you achieve everything you want in life without giving up. You are incredibly hard working. The amount of work you have been putting into everything summer is amazing at your age. Most boys would be flying, playing pranks and hanging out with friends. Instead, you are working to become a better wizard and learn what you need and want to learn. But you never stop smiling while doing it. Yes, you might get frustrated at times, but you don't give up. And you still make time to go flying with Sirius, and play pranks. You will still be seeing your friends because they are important to you. So I'm sorry for how I treated you. I shouldn't have, and while I can't change the past, I can change the present and the future."

"Thank you Severus, that means a lot to me. I guess I never really let go of how you treated me. You apologizing means a lot to me, and I know you are being honest."

"I am Harry. Now, remember when we went over rules and consequences?" At Harry's nod, Severus continues. "You are obviously worried you are getting a spanking, but Harry, we said a spanking would only be for putting yourself in serious danger. I think me giving you a smack on your bum the other day affected you more than you wanted to admit, am I right?"

"Yes, it did. I know you smacked me because I was being really disrespectful, and I know you would never truly hurt me, but it brought back some memories of the Dursleys. You have saved my life several times already, and I know you wouldn't hurt me. But while I know that, it was hard to separate."

"You are correct, I would never hurt you. Despite not being nice to you, I have always tried to keep you as safe as possible. I understand that it's difficult to separate. While you deserved it, I shouldn't have smacked you until you were more comfortable around me and we knew each other better. Harry, you won't get a spanking or a smack for everything. We want to help you learn and grow. A smack will only be as a warning that you are about to get into serious trouble. You will likely get grounded, privileges taken away, given chores or something similar before you'd get a spanking. Please don't fear us, or fear punishment. It is meant to help you learn not to do something, and to hopefully get you to think twice before doing something you know you shouldn't. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

"Yes I think I do. I really do know that you all mean well, and I think over time I'll see that. Right now I just have nothing to compare it to."

"Harry, I'm sorry you overheard Sirius and I. I should have cast a silencing spell. I was never planning on spanking you." Both Severus and Harry jump around at hearing Remus voice. They hadn't heard him come in. "You deserve to be punished for what you did, but I know the timed spell was Sirius idea. He is also the adult and should have thought about the consequences more. I could tell earlier that you hadn't thought about the consequences and that you felt bad. I don't want to ruin your birthday, so after your birthday we are locking up your broom for a week. I want you to spend the rest of the day until dinner in your room or the library, finishing up your summer homework. Once you are done with that you can do some studying or simply read a book. I'm sure you'd feel better if you finally got that potions essay out of the way. Cub, I never want you to fear punishment. The way I punish Sirius is different, because Sirius and I have an agreement on what works best for him. If you want to know how it's different, talk to Sirius sometime. He'll explain it to you and you might feel better. I didn't mean to make you wait so long, but I wanted to get Sirius' punishment out of the way so he could go finish getting everything ready for your birthday. I also wanted a chance to talk to you calmly."

At hearing his punishment, Harry's shoulders droop a little. _I love my broom, and not having it for a week will be hard. I don't mind having to finish my homework, I was planning on doing that anyway and I saw a book the other day that I really want to read._ "I'm sorry for the prank Remus." Harry gets up off the couch and walks over to Remus. He hesitates a few seconds and then puts his arms around him in a hug.

Remus is looking at Severus in shock. He wasn't expecting to get a hug after punishing Harry, but he thinks it's Harry's conscience playing a part. He knows Harry truly feels bad and this is his way of apologizing. But he still wasn't expecting a hug, it truly shows how much Harry already cares about him. When Harry finally lets go, he smiles down at him. "Now I have some work to get done. Behave yourself, alright?"

"I will Remus. I'm going to the library, all my books are down there. Severus, when you have time can you help me with my essay? I really don't understand it."

"I'll be down in a bit Harry, I need to get some brewing done first. Poppy asked for some things for the infirmary. I'll come help you in about an hour, is that alright?"

"Sure, that's fine. I'll do some reading until you get there. Thanks!" Harry smiles at both Severus and Remus and then almost skips out the door.

Remus and Severus look at each other in shock. "Well, he sure does bounce back fast, doesn't he. I just took away his broom for a week, and he didn't even seem to care!"

"Don't get your hopes up Remus, I'm sure he'll try to get it back before the week is over. He'll realize soon enough that he misses it. Right now he's just happy that you aren't angry anymore. I also think knowing that he won't get spanked for everything is making him feel better. I think he was worried that he would be. Hopefully we've changed his thoughts on that, but we'll probably have to remind him a few more times."

"I'm sure you're right. Well, I'll let you get to your brewing. I'm going to go help Sirius with party planning."

The rest of the day goes without any more incidents. Sirius and Remus are nowhere to be found most of the day, and Severus spends most of the day in the library with Harry. Harry finally understands his potions essay, and finishes it right before dinner. When they finally all sit down at dinner, Harry notices that Sirius is fidgeting in his seat. _I know he got a spanking, and he really looks uncomfortable sitting down, so how is he still smiling and joking around?_

Sirius notices Harry's look. At first he doesn't know why, but then he realizes what's going on. "Harry, my bum is sore but I knew that would happen if I pranked Remus. When we confirmed our bond, we went over everything and agreed on punishments. I don't like getting spanked any more than anyone else would, but it works better than some other punishments would. Remus and I are both adults, and grounding me just doesn't work. I don't have many rules, and besides the pranking rule, the only rules have to do with staying out of danger and staying healthy. He doesn't control my life, he just wants to make sure I don't do anything stupid to put myself in danger or hurt my health. I can be very impulsive and reckless, and he's just helping with that. So don't worry about me fidgeting a little."

"It's just hard to understand, but if you are alright with it, then I'll get used to it. I wouldn't want to lose you just because you did something reckless either!"

"I'm glad to hear that Harry. Every relationship is different. Ours works this way, but it wouldn't work for everyone. But if you are ever worried or have questions, you can ask us, alright?"

"Alright Sirius" Harry smiles back.

The rest of the evening is spent in front of the fire. Harry is anxious for his birthday, but he also knows that he'll make some great memories regardless of what happens. And for the first time, Harry goes to sleep, knowing he doesn't have to celebrate his birthday at midnight.

The next morning Harry gets woken up by a very loud and enthusiastic Sirius. "Wake up Harry! It's your birthday! Come one, we have to start celebrating!"

Harry just groans back at him, and tries to get back under the covers. He is not a morning person. "Oh no, don't go back to sleep! Come on, I already woke up Remus and Severus. They're downstairs waiting for you!" Sirius pulls away the covers and starts tickling Harry until he gets up.

A few minutes later an excited Sirius and a slightly less excited, but still smiling, Harry walk into the dining room. "Happy Birthday Harry" both Remus and Severus say. Harry sees that his chair is decorated with balloons and there is confetti all over the table. He can tell that this is going to be the most elaborate birthday party he's ever seen, if this is how it already is at breakfast. As soon as he sits down, huge platters of food appear on the table.

When Harry is finally done eating, Sirius hands him an envelope. "This is a gift from the three of us. We got you gifts individually as well, but you'll get those at your party. We wanted to give you this now."

Harry opens the envelope, and pulls out several pieces of parchment. He stares at the first one in shock. "Skiing, we're going skiing?"

"Yes Harry, we are. For Christmas vacation, we are going to be spending a week in Austria. Just the four of us."

"Thank you! I've always wanted to go skiing! The Dursleys went every year and it sounded like so much fun! I know I still have to wait a couple months, but I'm already looking forward to it!" Remus, Severus and Sirius smile back at Harry, glad that he's so excited.

Harry then unfolds the second parchment. "Sirius, you're going to be teaching at Hogwarts?"

"Yes Harry, I am. Dumbledore has decided that Binns needs to be replaced. I will be teaching History of Magic."

Harry is smiling at him. "I'm glad you'll be there! I didn't like the idea of you being here by yourself, with Remus, Severus and I all at Hogwarts. And Binns really was boring; his class was basically a nap hour."

"It was like that when we were students. You might actually learn something now! I was hoping you'd want me there. I know it's not really a gift, but I found out yesterday afternoon and wanted to see your reaction. I had a feeling you'd be happy about it."

"I am. It might not be a real gift, but I think it's a gift anyway. Now I really have to stay out of trouble, with all three of you there!" Harry adds with a cheeky smile.

"As if that will stop you." Sirius replies with a grin.

Soon they all get up, and Harry heads upstairs to get ready for the day. Everyone is supposed to arrive in a few hours and he wants to have a little bit of quiet time before they do. Before he knows it, he is called back downstairs by Sirius. A few minutes later, all the guests start arriving on the front lawn by portkey. All the Weasleys are there, including Bill and Charlie who were home visiting their parents. Hermione and her parents, Neville and his grandma, Dean with his parents, Seamus with his parents, Professor McGonnagal and Hagrid arrive together and finally Luna arrives with her father. Once Harry is done greeting everyone, they are all led around to the back of the house by Sirius. Harry's jaw drops and he stops walking when he sees the backyard. There are streamers floating in the air, along with balloons everywhere. There are tables set up for everyone to sit at. There is a huge banner that says Happy Birthday Harry. Off to the side is a table with drinks. There is an empty table that everyone is putting their gifts on. When he continues to look around, he notices the huge tables with food. He assumes it's all under preservation charms. On the lawn further away from all the tables is a Quidditch pitch with stands for anyone who wants to watch. Lanterns are floating around everywhere, and they light a path towards the pitch and a path towards the house. Sirius notices Harry has stopped walking and walks back.

"Do you like it?"

"Like it? I love it! Sirius you didn't have to do all this! How could I not see this out my bedroom window?"

"I charmed your window so that you wouldn't be able to see anything. I wanted it to be a surprise. And I didn't have to do all this, but I wanted to. Come on, let's go join everyone and get this party started!"

Soon everyone is sitting around tables with plates of food in front of them. Harry is at a table with Hermione, Ron, Neville, Luna, Dean, Seamus and Charlie. Most of the adults are sitting at tables together, and Arthur has already engaged Hermione's parents in an animated conversation. "He's probably asking them about muggle things" Harry says with a laugh. Everyone at the table laughs, knowing that Harry is probably right.

"So Harry, what is this place. This house is huge! Why aren't you with your aunt and uncle?" Ron asks, looking at the house and the backyard with envy.

"It's my house, this is where I live now. Now that Sirius is free, I will be living with him, not my aunt and uncle." Harry replies. He can see the envy in Ron's eyes and he doesn't like it. _I know his family doesn't have much, but can't he just be happy for me?_

"Your house? Must be nice. But Harry, you have to go back to your aunt and uncle! Does Dumbledore even know you moved? He says it's very important you stay there!"

"Ron, Dumbledore is now my parent or guardian. He doesn't have to approve of me moving. I'm just as safe here, and I'm around people I love and that love me. Why can't you be happy for me?"

"Harry, it's not that. How do you even know Sirius loves you, we've known you longer! If anything you should be at the Burrow if you aren't at your aunt and uncles."

"Ron, Sirius is my godfather. I am living with him, and it's staying that way. I know he loves me because he's told me." Harry says, starting to get annoying that Ron can't be happy for him.

Sirius has noticed that Harry is no longer smiling and comes over to the table. "I think it's time for cake! What do you all think?"

Everyone is nodding their head in agreement, and Harry smiles up at Sirius. Sirius raises his wand, and a huge cake floats in front of Harry. It's in the shape of a snitch, and it even has moving wings on it. "This is so cool! I love magic!" Harry exclaims when he sees it.

After a very much off key singing of Happy Birthday, they all dig into the cake. Harry loves it, and vows to find out who made it. After everyone is done eating cake, they move onto the presents that are piled high on the table. Seeing all of them, Harry starts to get a little shy. He's not used to that many presents and definitely not to having to open them in front of people.

Sirius leans down and whispers in his ear "It's ok Harry, all these people are here because they care about you. I know you are overwhelmed, but you can do this."

Harry starts opening all the gifts, and it takes a good hour before he gets through all of them. He has a received a huge assortment of books (mostly on Quidditch), candy, a Gryffindor banner, Quidditch gloves, a self-inking quill, some pranks and some games. From Sirius he gets custom made Quidditch padding so he doesn't have to use the schools anymore. From Remus he gets several books on defense, and from Severus he gets several potions books. Looking at the books, he sees that the defense books are somewhat advanced and include a lot of spells. He also notices that the potions books are intended to be used with his schoolbooks, and include useful tips. He thanks everyone, still not believing everything he received.

After the presents, everyone is standing around talking. Harry heads inside to put his gifts away, and when he comes back, he notices Ron and Ginny standing in a corner by the backdoor. They are talking softly, and Harry doesn't know if he should walk away or listen. After hearing what Ron says, he decides to stay and listen.

"We have to get him to come stay at the Burrow Ginny! Dumbledore said we have to be good friends to him so that he becomes close to us and trusts us! If he stays with Sirius, he'll become attached to him instead! We need him to spend more time with us!"

"I know that Ron! He's rich and he doesn't know it, so we have to get him to trust us before Sirius tells him or he finds out. Remember what mom said? If I can get close to him I can marry him and then it will all be mine! I would be married to THE Harry Potter, and I'll be so popular! I know we are still young, but we have to work on him now so that when we are of age he will already want to be with me!"

"We have to find a way. Mom made me go sit with him on the train to Hogwarts and make sure I told him all these things so he'd want to be in Gryffindor and start to trust me. Dumbledore told us he didn't know anything about the wizarding world and Mom had told me that Dumbledore had charmed the hat to put him in Gryffindor. We have to make sure he doesn't find out too much or we might lose him, and if we lose him, we lose the money and the fame!"

"When we get back home, let's come up with a plan. We need to get back before anyone notices we are gone. We can't have dad, Bill, Charlie or the Twins find out what we are doing. Mom said they don't know about the money or that Dumbledore said he'd make sure you get to marry Harry. We need to keep it that way because they'd stop anything we tried"

Once Harry hears Ron and Ginny walk away, he sinks down against the wall. _How could they? I thought they were my friends, but I guess it was all fake. I'm glad the twins aren't involved, I really like them. I don't know Bill or Charlie but they seemed nice. All because of my money? And what did they mean the hat was charmed? I really need to talk to Sirius, Remus and Severus about what I heard but it'll have to wait until after the party. _Harry gets up from the floor, puts a smile on his face and heads back out to the party.

Pretty soon everyone wants to play Quidditch, and quickly two teams are formed. Sirius reveals a dozen brooms so that everyone can play, and they all head to the pitch. Harry is having a blast playing, especially since Charlie is a decent seeker as well. After two hours he finally spots the snitch, and after some fast flying, he beats Charlie to it, getting his team to win the game.

"Great flying Harry! You really are a natural on a broom."

"Thanks Charlie! You are pretty good yourself. I enjoyed this game, maybe we can do it again sometime."

Everyone heads back towards the tables, and they all get some more food. This time Harry walks around while eating so he gets to talk to everyone. He finds out that Hermione's parents are incredibly nice and love learning about the wizarding world, Luna's father is just as eccentric as she is, and Neville's grandmother is really as strict as she looks. Pretty soon everyone starts leaving, as it is getting late in the evening. The lanterns are lit everywhere, and Harry thinks it looks truly beautiful.

It takes another good hour before everyone has said their goodbyes and has portkeyed out, and Harry is exhausted. Sirius slings an arm around his shoulder. "You're exhausted aren't you pup? So what did you think?"

"This was the best birthday ever Sirius. Thank you all for doing this for me! I'm ready to fall down on the couch with a good cup of hot chocolate though."

"Well why don't we all head in and do just that!"

They all head inside and everyone is thankful to be sitting down again. After they've been sitting for a few minutes, Harry tells them what he overheard Ron and Ginny talking about.

"Pup, that's not good. I think Molly just wants the best future for her daughter, but tricking you like that is not okay. I'm curious if you'd be in Gryffindor if the hat hadn't been charmed by Dumbledore."

"You can always request a re-sort at the start of term feast. We've had it happen before that we felt a student was in the wrong house, and it was done. Any head of house can request a resort if they feel a student should be in a different house. It's rare, but it's possible. Since I'm head of house, I can request it if that's something you want to do." Severus says.

"I don't know Severus. I agree with Sirius that I'd like to know if I'd be in Gryffindor, but I'm friends with a lot of Gryffindors and I'd like to stay close to them, even if I'm no longer going to be friends with Ron or Ginny."

"Pup, why don't you think about it? You don't have to decide until right before school starts. I don't think you should just drop Ron as a friend. See how he reacts, and don't take anything for granted. If you just drop him, he's going to want to know why."

"That's true Sirius. We'll see what happens, for now I'm not going to say or doing anything about that. I'll just keep my eyes open. I'm exhausted, I'm going to head up to bed. See you all tomorrow."

"Goodnight pup"

"Goodnight cub"

"Goodnight Harry"


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The next few days pass fairly un-eventfully for the occupants of Black Manor. Severus spends most of his time in the lab working on potions for the infirmary and Harry, Sirius and Remus don't see much of him outside of meals. Sirius and Remus work with Harry on his elemental magic skills during the mornings, while the afternoons they all enjoy the beautiful weather outside. At first, Harry doesn't really miss his broom but by Tuesday he really wants to go flying. By Wednesday he is downright sulking about not having his broom. Thursday afternoon finds him sitting in the grass in the middle of the Quidditch pitch (which Sirius had announced was staying permanently).

**What are you doing?**

Harry looks around, trying to figure out where that voice had come from, only to finally notice the snake that had slithered up to him. **Wishing I could fly. **

**Why can't you fly? **

**My guardians have taken away my broom for a week. I'm bored. **Harry lets out a deep sigh at this.

**I'm sorry snakeling. I've never met a speaker before. There is only one other. **

Harry nods. **Yes I know. He is evil. I don't speak often. What is your name? **

The snake slithers up to Harry. **My name is Ella. I like you, you feel warm. **

**Thank you. Where….**

"Harry, get away from that snake! That is a poisonous viper!" Sirius interrupts, running towards him.

"Don't worry Sirius, she's not dangerous. Her name is Ella and she very friendly."

**He is right, I am dangerous. But I won't hurt you. I won't hurt him either unless you want me to.**

"I don't know how comfortable I am that close to her. And I know you're a parseltongue, but it's odd hearing you speak it."

"Don't worry Sirius, she said she won't hurt you either unless I tell her to. She likes me, I'm warm." Harry smiles. "What are you doing out here anyway?"

"I was looking for you. We haven't seen you in a few hours and it's almost time for tea. What are you doing sitting in the middle of the pitch?"

"Wishing I could fly. Please Sirius? Just for a few minutes? I won't tell Remus you let me if I can just get on the broom for a minute?" Harry pleads, trying to make puppy dog eyes at Sirius.

"Harry, I can't let you do that. I'm your godfather, remember? I'm supposed to uphold your punishment. Now if Remus and Severus were both out of the house, I might consider looking the other way" Sirius replies with a cheeky smile on his face.

Harry grins. "Well maybe they'll leave soon or something. I know I normally go the whole summer without flying so one week shouldn't be a big deal, but knowing I have this wicked pitch in my back yard is making it hard!"

"I know pup. James always hated when his parents took away his broom as punishment. He always said it was cruel." Sirius grins back. "I'm surprised you've lasted this long without trying to get your broom back early"

"I've been trying to stay busy but I'm getting bored."

"Well, let's go inside for tea and see if we can find something to get your mind off flying. It's only a few more days."

Sirius and Harry both get up off the grass and start to walk towards the house.

**Don't forget about me! I want to come with you.**

Harry stops and turns back towards Ella. **I don't know if my guardians will let you stay in the house. I can take you to the porch but you have to stay there until I can ask all of them.**

Harry picks up Ella and carries her back towards the house. Sirius decides to walk a few steps behind Harry, still not sure about the snake. Harry sets Ella on a chair by the backdoor, and heads inside to the living room with Sirius. When they get there, Remus and Severus are already sitting there and a tea tray appears.

"I found him out on the pitch, talking with a viper." Sirius tells Remus and Severus with a grimace.

"A viper? Harry, what were you thinking? Are you alright?" Remus starts, immediately jumping up and starting to check Harry to make sure he's okay.

"I'm fine Remus. Ella is very friendly and she won't harm me. She also said she won't harm Sirius and she won't harm any of you if I ask her not to. She liked how warm I was, and she wants to be my familiar and come inside with me."

"Absolutely not. I don't think I can live with a poisonous snake, and just because you can talk to her doesn't mean you can control her" Severus immediately responds with a glare.

"Oh come on, she won't hurt anyone, I promise. I'm a parseltongue, why wouldn't I use that ability to my advantage and have my own snake. Please?" Harry says, looking at Severus, Remus and Sirius pleadingly.

"I think Harry can handle the snake. I saw how he was with her outside, and she seemed perfectly comfortable and calm." Sirius says.

"I don't know Sirius. I agree that Harry should take advantage of his parseltongue, but it's a big risk to take since none of us can help if something goes wrong." Remus says, contemplative.

"What if I got her a snake habitat, and she'd stay in it unless she's with me? That way she won't be roaming the house freely and I will always be there to talk to her." Harry suggests. He can tell when he says this that Remus is starting to come around. Now he just needs to convince Severus. "And Severus, wouldn't her poison be a really good potion ingredient for anti-venins?"

Sirius tries to hide his smirk, knowing that Harry made a very sneaky move by mentioning potion ingredients to Severus.

Severus glares back at Harry, knowing that Harry has a good point. "Well yes, and viper poison is hard to come by and really expensive. I think if she stays in her habitat, and she agrees to stay away from me as much as possible I can be persuaded. By one accident and she is out, understood?"

"Thank you thank you thank you!" Harry says excitedly, jumping up and running towards the back door. A few seconds later he comes bouncing back in with Ella. "This is Ella. Isn't she beautiful? I already told her you'd like some poison Severus and she said that'd be fine if it means she can stay with me. Can we go shopping for her habitat and supplies?"

"Sit down and drink your tea first Harry. We will go get everything we need afterwards. I need to go to the bookstore anyway, so we can go to Diagon Alley." Sirius says with a smile.

Harry has a hard time sitting still from excitement throughout tea, and he is constantly conversing with Ella. Finally Sirius has had enough of his fidgeting and tells Harry to put Ella down and get his cloak so they can leave.

Sirius and Harry get everything they could possibly need for Ella at Diagon Alley. While they're there, Sirius suddenly remembers something. "Harry, would you like to re-decorate your room? You haven't really made it your own yet, but we can look for things now if you want?"

"Really, I can re-decorate? I'd love to!"

"Off course you can re-decorate, it's your house! Let's go to that furniture store, and start with the basics. After that we can think of what to put on the walls! We won't have to paint, that can be done with magic. What colors do you want your room to be?"

"Well, I want a Gryffindor banner, but I don't want a red and gold room. Maybe I'll have all four house banners, to represent Hogwarts as a whole? I know I'm a Gryffindor, heck I'm even Lord Gryffindor, but I also own ¼ of Hogwarts and I love Hogwarts as a whole. For the rest of my room I want sky blue and whites with green accents."

"I think we can work with that. Why don't we get all four banners, but have the Gryffindor one be just slightly bigger? We can put it up on the wall, and have the other three surrounding it. I like the color scheme." By this time they had arrive in the store and start looking around. Soon a sales lady comes towards them to help them pick out everything they want.

"How can I help you gentlemen today?" She asks with a big smile on her face. She has recognized them, and hopes to get a big sale out of this.

"I'm decorating my bedroom. I'll need a big king size bed, night stands, a dresser and wardrobe, a couch with two chairs and sidetables. A desk with chair. I want it all to match. My colors are going to be sky blue and white with green accents, so I want my furniture to be a little bit darker wood but not too dark. The room has a big window so it's very light and I want to keep it that way. For the couch and chairs I want something comfortable. Can you show me what you have and we'll decide from that?"

"Off course. Let's go this way and start with the bed."

Sirius and Harry follow the sales lady all around the story, and it takes several hours to pick out everything. Harry tests every bed, every couch and every chair. Finally he decides on everything. The store also has the Hogwarts banners, and all the bedding they need. Harry gets a big corkboard for above his desk so he can hang pictures and other mementos.

"We can have all this delivered securely within an hour sir. To ensure the privacy of our customers, our delivery personnel will not remember where they've delivered or to whom once they leave. Would that be acceptable?"

"That's perfect." Harry replies. He presses the Black Gringotts key to the payment sheet, and it fills in the delivery address and creates the bank draft.

"Thank you Lord Black." The lady says, recognizing the information and knowing that only the Lord Black would have been able to give that address and bank draft. She is wondering what Harry Potter is doing with the Black Lordship key when Sirius Black is with him, but she decides that she'll think about that later. "We will have this delivered to you in an hour."

Sirius and Harry decide to head home as soon as they leave the store, knowing that they've been gone longer than expected.

As soon as they arrive at home, they are met with a frantic Remus and a glaring Severus.

"Where have you been? You should have been back hours ago!"

"Calm down Remus. We decided while we were out that we should shop for Harry's bedroom since he hasn't had a chance to decorate it to his tastes yet. It took longer than we expected." Sirius replies, seeing the worry starting to fade on Remus' face.

"And you didn't think to send a quick message? You shouldn't have been gone for more than an hour, and you were gone for four! Don't you worry me like that again!"

Sirius walks over to Remus and wraps him in a big hug. "It's alright Remus, we're back. I forgot that this close to the full moon you get anxious more quickly. I'm sorry for not sending a message."

"Can we go clean out my room now so they can move everything in when it gets delivered?" Harry asks, realizing that Remus has calmed down and Severus is no longer glaring.

"Absolutely pup! Let's go!" Sirius says, letting go of Remus and bouncing up the stairs after Harry.

Harry and Sirius spend the next half hour taking everything out of the wardrobe, dresser, desk and nightstand. After it's all empty, they shrink all the current furniture. Sirius then calls Dobby and has him take the shrunken furniture to the attic. Next he shows Harry how to change the color of the walls. A few minutes later, Harry has changed the color. After changing it a few times, he has spelled the walls by the window and the walls by the door blue, while the wall over his bed and over the couch and desk are white. He has decided that all his wall decorations will fill in the white wall. Next he puts an emerald green border around the whole room. Knowing that his bedding will be white sheets, and a blue cover with green decoration on it.

Harry and Sirius have just finished everything when the first of the movers come in with the furniture. They assume Remus or Severus has let them in the house. In no time all the furniture is put in place and re-sized and the movers leave. Harry and Sirius spell everything back to the wardrobe and dressers and hang up the decorations on the walls. Remus and Severus both walk into the room and are impressed by how it looks.

"It has changed the room completely. It makes the room much lighter, while the blue walls don't make it too bright. Well done Harry." Remus says.

Severus in the meantime sits down on the couch, only to sink in completely. "What is wrong with this couch, how can you sit on this?" He scowls.

Harry laughs "That's the point! If you want to be uncomfortable you can go to the parlor, but I wanted something that I can relax on. I wanted it to be soft and fluffy and that's exactly what that couch is!" Harry drops down on the couch next to Severus with a smile. Remus and Sirius both sit down in a chair.

"This really is comfortable Harry. I can see why you chose them." Remus says with a smile. "Why did you get all four Hogwarts banners?" Harry repeats the explanation he gave Sirius.

Not much later, they all hear Harry's stomach grumble and decide it's time for dinner. Harry is happy that he finally has a space that is truly his in every way.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Before Harry knows it it is Monday and he is allowed to fly again. He decides to do so before breakfast as soon as it is light out. Sirius finds him on the Quidditch pitch and calls him inside to eat.

"Harry, I'd like to start on Occlumency today during your lessons. I think it's important we start it as soon as possible. It is difficult to learn unless you are a natural occlumens, and we'd like you to be as proficient as possible before school starts." Severus says once Harry is almost done eating.

"Alright Severus. When do you want to start?"

"How about at 9, in the library? We can use the comfortable chairs in front of the fireplace. There are some books I want to use"

"Alright. I'm going to go upstairs and change. I'll see you at 9."

While Harry is upstairs getting ready for his lessons, Sirius and Remus decide to head to Hogwarts. They need to see about moving Sirius into his new rooms and make an inventory of what might be needed. There will also be a staff meeting later that evening and they want everything to be done before then. Severus heads to the library to get out the books on occlumency. He looks up when he hears Harry fall down in one of the chairs.

"Comfortable?" He said with a smirk, seeing Harry sprawled out.

"Very. I love these chairs."

"Well as comfortable as you might be, I do need you to sit up straight for this."

With a little bit of grumbling, Harry shifts so that he's sitting straight but is still comfortable. As soon as he is situated, Severus immediately jumps into lecture mode.

"Now there is no way to find out if you are a natural occlumens except by trying. Even a natural occlumens needs training, but if you were one you'd pick it up really fast. There are different ways to block your mind. The first is to create a wall or shield. The person trying to read your mind would quite literally hit a wall and not be able to see anything. This method makes it very obvious that you are occluding. The advantage to this one is that it's the easiest to learn. The disadvantage is that if the person who is trying to read your mind knows you are occluding, they might try to break down the wall. The second method is to create a wall, but to put some memories in front of the wall, and some behind. For instance, you would keep all the innocent memories like you flying on a broom or hanging out with your friends in front of the wall, while keeping your secrets behind the wall. This is a little bit less obvious to others, and they will simply think you might not have anything to hide. Off course if they look for something specific, they might hit your wall. The last method is the one I use. It is the hardest to master, and most can't unless they are a natural occlumens. I was lucky that I was one, and that I'm able to use it since it provides the best protection against strong wizards like the headmaster. In this method you don't create a wall at all. You create compartments for various things that you don't want people to see, and you'll hide your memories there. However, you will also create fake versions of those memories that are not in compartments and are able to be seen. This way if for instance the headmaster knows you were with Sirius and he wants to know what you talked about, he can see the memory of that conversation. The headmaster would not know that it is a fabricated memory and that the real memory of that conversation is hidden away. If you are proficient in this method, your mind will know what the real and what the fake memory is, but an outsider will not be able to tell. This method is also really good for controlling your emotions and remaining calm. If something is upsetting you or affecting your emotions, you can push those emotions away and replace them with calm ones until you have time to deal with them. The compartments and hidden places in your mind are still called shield because you are still effectively shielding. It is important you drop those shields for at least an hour a day to give your mind time to process everything you've experienced. It's like when you sleep at night, your body is resting from everything that day and recuperating. It's the same when you drop your shield, it gives your mind that same rest. Does this make sense?"

"Yes it does. So how do I go about building shields? Are we going to start with the first method or are we going straight to the last one since that's what you want me to learn eventually?"

"The first step is seeing if you are a natural occlumens. If you are, we will start working on the last method. If you aren't, we will start with the first one and build on that. The way I'm going to test your mind is by going in and trying to read it. The spell for that is Legilimens, which can be cast silently. Keep in mind that anything I might see while we are doing these lessons is completely confidential, and I will not share it with anyone, not even Remus or Sirius. If I see something I'm worried about, I'll ask you about it, but besides that I won't say anything or bring anything up. I would like for you to try to clear your mind. Let me know when you are ready."

"I'm ready"

"legilimens" Severus says softly, and he slowly enters Harry's mind. He is amazed by what he sees. Harry's mind looks almost like a multi compartment trunk with doors and latches everywhere. He comes across a lot of memories fairly quickly, but behind all that there is a whole structure. He slowly pulls back.

"Did you feel that? You should have felt a soft brush against your mind. A skilled legilimens will be able to do it this way so you'll hardly even notice he or she is doing it. They will not need eye contact. If someone is not so skilled in this, they will need eye contact to be able to enter your mind."

"It felt almost like a tickle. It was odd feeling."

"Yes, it will feel odd at first. I believe you are a natural occlumens Harry. While you are currently not hiding any memories or thoughts and I was able to see everything, behind all that there was a structure already set up. There are various compartments all over that you can hide things in. This will make it lot easier. Now I want you to close your eyes and focus on your magic." He waits for Harry to close his eyes and start focusing. "Now take deep breaths, and retreat within yourself. It might feel odd at first, but try to follow your magic to its core. Now I want you to follow that magic to your mind. Occlumency is a form of magic so there will be strands of magic going to your mind. Once you are in your mind, I want you to look around. When you are done looking around, I want you to slowly back out of your mind."

Severus waits for several minutes until Harry opens his eyes.

"That is wicked! I never knew I had all these things in my mind! So now how do I hide certain memories and how do I fabricate new ones?"

For the next few hours Severus walks Harry through hiding his memories in different categories and different compartments. He then teaches him how to create fake memories to replace the ones he has hidden.

"Very well done Harry. Now we have about an hour before lunch, why don't you go lay down for a bit. Creating shields can be mentally exhausting. Tomorrow we will continue our lessons, and I will show you how to strengthen your shields, how to put them up and how to drop them. I will also show you change the strength of your shields depending on needs so they are not always at full strength which can be hard on your mind."

"Alright Severus. I am a little tired. I'll see you at lunch."

An hour later a slightly less tired Harry joins Severus for lunch.

"Where are Sirius and Remus?"

"They went to Hogwarts to get Sirius' rooms situated. There is a full staff meeting this evening after dinner and they are staying for that. Since I have to go to that as well, you will be by yourself. Dobby has been instructed to let us know if there is a problem, but we trust you to be old enough to be here for a few hours."

"I'll be fine Severus. I've stayed by myself many times before at my aunt and uncles. I'll probably read a book or something."

The rest of the afternoon passes fairly quietly. It has started to rain and Harry is unable to go flying, so he stays inside and writes letters back and forth with Hermione. After making sure it is alright with Severus, they agree for Harry to go to Hermione's house on Wednesday. Her parents have agreed to have their fireplace hooked to the floo network on Tuesday, so Harry will be able to floo to her house. Harry wants to talk to Hermione about the coming school year, and he knows she isn't happy with Ron's behavior at the moment.

After dinner Severus leaves for Hogwarts, telling Harry he'd be gone for about two to three hours. He says there is a lot to discuss since this is the first full staff meeting of the year and it might take longer than expected but to not wait up for them. It doesn't take long for Harry to get bored in the quiet house. Dobby has gotten him hot chocolate and biscuits, but even that and his books can'tt entertain him for long. The house is simply too quiet. It is no longer raining, and he really wants to go flying, but he knows that he isn't allowed to fly in the dark.

Another half hour passes, and Harry decides that nobody will know if he goes flying for just a bit and he'd be back inside before anyone comes home. He grabs his broom and heads up into the sky. An hour later he lands and heads back inside. He puts his broom in the cupboard by the back door and walks through the living room towards the stairs. As soon as he starts heading up the stairs he comes face to face with Severus.

"Uhh Hi Severus. You're back early"

"Yes, the meeting didn't last as long as expected. Where were you? We were looking all over the house for you."

Harry sees Remus coming from upstairs and Sirius coming from the parlor. "I was outside by the backdoor. I wasn't out there long, I must not have heard you come back."

"And what were you doing outside?" Sirius asks.

Harry doesn't answer the question, knowing that he'd get in trouble no matter how he'd try to answer. So he opts to simply stare at his shoes.

"Harry, look at me and answer the question."

"I was flying" Harry whispers.

"You were flying? Even though we've explained how dangerous it is to fly in the dark? Why would you do that?"

"I was bored and the house was so quiet. I figured I could go for a quick fly and then I was going to head to bed."

"You were bored? Well we'll make sure you aren't going to be bored the rest of the week. What you did was dangerous. You can't see out there and with the speed you are flying you would hit something before you even realized it was there. If you really wanted to fly at night for some reason, there are potions you can take to help you see at night as if it was day for a certain length of time. You could have waited for us to get home and we would have given you one so you could fly for a bit. This was reckless Harry."

"I'm sorry Sirius. I didn't think it through."

"Exactly, you didn't think. You need to learn to think before you do things. Head on up to your room and get ready for bed, I'll be there in a minute."

Harry walks around Severus and Remus and heads to his room. The three adults head to the living room.

"He's thirteen, I can't blame him for wanting to fly. But he needs to learn that what he did was dangerous."

"Sirius, you handled that fine. Harry knew that what he did was wrong and I have a feeling he knew even before he did it."

"I know I could tell that he knew. I need to make sure he understands that I take his safety very seriously. I will have him write an essay on all the things he could have done instead of put his life in danger. The length of his grounding is going to depend on the quality of that essay."

Sirius goes upstairs to Harry's room and sits down on the side of the bed. Harry looks at him with apprehension, knowing that he is going to be punished.

"Harry, what you did was foolish. There are many other things you could have done. I want you to write an essay about what you could have done differently, why flying at night is dangerous and how you can safely fly at night. I also want you to include what it would have done to us if you had gotten hurt. I'm not going to tell you a length, but I want it to be good. You are grounded until I have read your essay. Depending on how much I think you've learned from writing it, I will decide how long you'll be grounded for. Understood?" Sirius says with a stern look.

"Yes Sirius. I'm sorry, I should have thought about it. I'll write it tomorrow."

"Alright pup. I think Severus wanted to continue Occlumency in the morning, so you can do that in the afternoon. Now it's getting late so why don't you go to sleep and I'll see you at breakfast. Goodnight pup"

"Goodnight Sirius" Harry snuggles under the covers, hoping that his essay is going to be good enough so he can go to Hermione's on Wednesday.

The next afternoon finds Harry at a desk in the library, furiously writing his essay. Just before dinner he finishes, looking at the five feet of parchment in satisfaction. He thinks he has written a really good essay. Now to see if it is good enough.

After dinner, Sirius sits down in the living room to read the essay. He can tell that Harry has really put a lot of effort into it. He had planned to ground Harry until Monday, but because his essay is well written, he decides to change that.

"Harry, this essay is really good. I can tell you put a lot of thought into it, and you learned something from it. Now you still did something dangerous, so you are grounded for another 2 days. On Friday you are free to do what you want again, but tomorrow and Thursday you are still grounded."

"But Sirius, I was supposed to go to Hermione's tomorrow! She's going on vacation on Thursday and she won't be back until school starts! Can I please go see her and be grounded Thursday and Friday instead?"

"No Harry you can't. You are grounded until Friday. You knew you'd get in trouble if you got caught, so if you wanted to see Hermione that badly, you shouldn't have broken the rules."

"Please Sirius? I promise I'll be really good?" Harry whines.

"Harry, drop the whining or you'll be grounded until Monday. You are not going to Hermione's tomorrow and that's final. Now why don't you head upstairs and get a bath and get ready for bed. You can read some before lights out."

Harry stomps up the stairs and slams his bedroom door shut, upon which Sirius flinches.

"Well, that went well." He sighs.

"Don't worry about it Sirius, he'll come around. No child likes to be punished, that's the point of punishment. He put himself in danger, if you had given into him now you would basically be telling him that it's okay to argue about his punishments. It's only a few weeks until school starts again, and he'll see Hermione then. They can still owl each other, so he'll be fine." Remus says, squeezing Sirius' shoulder in comfort.

The next morning finds Harry pouting at breakfast. He still doesn't think it's fair that he can'tt just be grounded two different days. He completely ignores the adults, and they can all tell that he's still upset with his punishment.

During Harry's Occlumency lessons that morning, Severus has finally had enough of Harry's attitude. "Harry you are not even trying. You are giving me cheeky answers and not putting in an effort. Now drop the attitude. The sooner we get done here, the sooner you can play a game or do something else you enjoy."

"No I can't. If I could do what I enjoy I'd be allowed to go to Hermione's" Harry mumbles. Unfortunately for him, Severus has good hearing and hears what he says.

"That's it. Go put your nose in that corner until I tell you you can come out. You can think about your attitude while there."

Harry glares at Severus, but upon seeing the angry look on Severus face does as he's told. He does pick the corner furthest away. Ten minutes later Sirius and Remus come into the library to see how lessons are going, and they see Severus sitting by the fire while Harry is standing in the corner on the other side of the library.

"What happened?" Remus asks softly as he and Sirius join Severus at the fire.

"He's had an attitude all morning, and finally I had enough. He's in the corner to think about the benefits of changing that attitude."

"Why is he rebelling so much about this? He didn't put up a fuss when he had his broom taken away for a week, but two days grounding and this is what happens?" Sirius asks with a confused look.

"I think he's trying to see how far he can push the boundaries. It's a good sign because it means he's comfortable enough that he feels he can push, but it's something every teenager does. Once he realizes that we mean what we say, and that no matter how much trouble he gets into we'll still love him and be there for him, he'll be fine." Remus replies.

"Well I hope he realizes it soon. I don't like having to punish him, and I don't like when he's so upset with me." Sirius says, sighing.

"Nobody ever said parenting was easy. You'll find the students will test you at the beginning as well. You'll be a new teacher so they'll want to test you and see what you'll do and how strict you are." Severus smirks. "Harry, you can come back now. Please sit down" Severus calls over his shoulder.

Harry turns around and is surprised to see all of them there. He hadn't heard them come in.

"Harry, we know you are upset over not being allowed to go to Hermione's, but you'll see her on the train before you know it. However, no matter how upset you are with us, we will not tolerate the attitude you've had all morning. Since your Occlumency shields are already very strong and we aren't getting anywhere with it today, why don't you head upstairs and play quietly for a while until lunch."

Harry leaves the room and heads upstairs, at least as far as the adults know. Little do any of the adults know that Harry has different plans, and is in fact heading to the parlor. He never told Hermione he wasn't coming, so he grabs the floo powder and floos to her house.

"Hi Harry! You're a little earlier than you thought you would be."

"Hi Hermione" Harry says after a quick hug. "My lesson was done earlier. Where are your parents?"

"Oh, there was an emergency at the office so they left. They probably won't be back until dinner they said. Want to head into the backyard? It's beautiful out!"

Harry and Hermione head outside and sit on a picnic bench. They start talking about the new school year, their summers, and Ron's attitude.

Meanwhile at the manor, it is lunch time and Harry hasn't come down. Sirius goes up to Harry's room to get him, thinking that he's still sulking. When he realizes Harry isn't there, he checks all the other rooms upstairs.

"Hey guys, Harry isn't upstairs. I checked all the rooms."

The three men check the entire house and the backyard, without any luck. When they meet back in the living room, Sirius starts to panic.

"Where could he have gone? We sent him to his room two hours ago, he has to be around here somewhere?!"

"Sirius, calm down. We'll find him. What do you think the odds are that he went to Hermione's house? We told her parents that Harry was grounded so I can't imagine they'd let him stay if he showed up there but it's worth checking into" Remus says.

"I'll go check." Sirius says.

Back at Hermione's, Hermione and Harry are having a great time talking. They're discussing creating a club for all their friends who are loyal to them, since they agree they need allies whom they can trust at the school. While it might not be needed now, those friendships will become useful in the future. Suddenly Hermione sees Harry's eyes go wide at something behind her. She turns around, only to come face to face with a furious looking Sirius.

"Hermione, where are your parents?"

"They had an emergency at the office, sir. Why? Is something wrong?"

"Yes, something is wrong. Harry here is grounded and wasn't supposed to be here. We told your parents this morning."

Hermione quickly turns back around to Harry. "Harry! You didn't tell me you were grounded! My parents must have forgotten to tell me when they left in a hurry."

"Well I don't care. I don't care what Sirius says." Harry replies back, not knowing where those words came from. He knows he shouldn't have come here, and he definitely knows that now is a good time to be quiet so why is he still saying these things?

"Harry, let's go. Sorry Hermione, but Harry is going home. You can owl, but he won't be seeing you until the train to Hogwarts." Sirius says.

"Yes sir. Bye Harry. Good luck."

Harry starts slowly walking back towards the floo, trying to stay out of reach of Sirius. He has never seen Sirius this angry before. Unfortunately he has to walk right past Sirius to get through the door, and when he does, Sirius lands a firm smack on his behind to hurry him along.

"Let's go. You are in a lot of trouble young man and we are going to have a serious discussion when we get home."

When Sirius and Harry come through the floo, he immediately sees the worried looks on Remus and Severus faces. That worry is quickly replaced by anger however.

"Sit down Harry, and start explaining" Sirius says.

"There's nothing to explain. I wanted to go to Hermione's so I went to Hermione's."

"And you didn't think that we'd be worried when you went missing?"

"I was planning to be back by lunch so you wouldn't notice it. I lost track of time."

"Harry, we were extremely worried when you were nowhere to be found. Anything could have happened to you! And you are not great at floo travel at the best of times, what would you have done if you had ended up in the wrong location? We wouldn't have known where to even begin looking because we wouldn't have known where you tried to go! What you did was reckless and foolish. And to top it off we expressly forbid you from going while you were grounded. I don't know what has gotten into you, but it will stop here. Remus, Severus and I have to be back at Hogwarts in 2 weeks to prepare for the start of term. You will be staying at the Burrow for the last week of summer and take the train with the Weasleys. Since you feel that you are above the rules, you are grounded until then. We will lock away your broom, and we will take it to Hogwarts with us. You will not be allowed to fly at the Weasleys either, and you will help Molly with any chores she needs help with. Over the next two weeks, you will have chores around the house in the afternoons. Is that understood?"

The longer Sirius is talking, the more Harry starts sulking. He knows he shouldn't have gone to Hermione's but he honestly didn't expect to get caught. Now he got himself grounded for the rest of summer and he'd have extra chores. "Yes Sirius, I understand."

"Good. Then I want you to go upstairs and put on something comfortable. You are going to the lab with Severus and you will be helping him prepare ingredients for the remainder of the afternoon. Have you had lunch?"

"No, I haven't"

"Then once you're changed, head to the dining room. We'll have lunch first."

"You're not taking away food as part of my punishment?"

Sirius looks sad as Harry says this. "No Harry, we will never take away food or lock you in a cupboard. We love you no matter how much trouble you get into or how often we have to punish you. You could blow up this whole house and we'd still love you. Off course you'd be walking around with a sore backside after I get done punishing you, but we'd still love you. We will never abandon you, or starve you or lock you away."

Harry has tears in his eyes at this, jumps up and gives Sirius a big hug. "I'm sorry I'm so much trouble" he mumbles into Sirius' chest.

"Harry, you are not that much trouble. You were naughty and you broke the rules, but that's what teenage boys do. I have a feeling it won't be the last time."

"I love you Sirius"

"I love you to pup. Now head upstairs and get changed, I can hear your stomach grumbling for food." Sirius says with a soft smile. As Harry turns away to leave he lands a soft, light hearted smack on Harry's behind. Harry doesn't react to it, knowing that it's meant playfully. "And that's for ever doubting my love for you, you crazy child" Sirius says softly when Harry is already halfway up the stairs.

Sirius looks at Remus and Severus, who are both looking on with soft smiles.

"I think Harry needed to hear that. I really think he was testing you to see how far he could push before you'd send him away. I think today he finally realized that no matter what happens, we aren't going to push him away" Severus says quietly.

All three men agree, and they head to the dining room to see about lunch. They all know that while it took Harry getting into a lot of trouble to get here, this is a turning point. Harry needed the reassurance of their love, and Sirius was able to give it. When Harry comes in a few minutes later, they all notice how much more relaxed and content he looks. They all know he's not happy about being grounded and getting extra chores, but they can tell that he has accepted it.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The next several days Harry gets used to the new routine that he will have for the remainder of his summer at Black Manor. In the mornings he has lessons, in the afternoon he either helps Severus in the lab or helps Sirius and Remus when they need it. The evenings are spend quietly in the living room by the fire, each of them doing their own thing. Harry loves his lessons, and is always sad when they are over. He has gotten good at controlling the elements, and he is now a good occlumens. In the evenings he has been reading spell books, knowing that the last two weeks they'll be focusing on defense in his lessons.

On Monday morning, Sirius announces as breakfast that he has to go to Diagon Alley to get some things for school.

"Sirius, can I come with you? I know I'm grounded, but I was looking around my room and I realized that there is no way everything is going to fit in my trunk this year. I'd like to get a new one. When I bought mine I just got a small one because I didn't have much."

Sirius glances at Remus and Severus before answering. "Yes Harry, you may come. However, since you are still grounded we will not be stopping to get ice cream or at the Quidditch store. While we are there we need to stop at Gringotts and take care of a few things so it's just as well that you come with. Remus, why don't you come as well?"

"Why don't we all go? I need some things at the apothecary so we might as well get everything done today. Also, Harry still needs some of his school supplies and to refill his potions kit for the year" Severus suggests.

"That's a good idea Severus. If we leave right after breakfast we can beat most of the afternoon rush."

"What about my lessons? We were supposed to start defense today" Harry says, looking slightly disappointed.

"We'll do your lessons this afternoon when we get back. I guess it's your lucky day and you won't have to do any chores or help in the lab today" Sirius replies teasingly.

Harry decides to be mature and sticks out his tongue in reply.

After breakfast, they all floo to the Leaky Cauldron and from there walk into Diagon Alley. The first stop is Mr. Ollivanders.

"Why are we going in here? I already have my wand" Harry says in confusion.

"I want to get you a wand holster Harry. Carrying it around in your back pocket like you do is going to cause an accident one of these days, and it makes your wand easy to steal" Sirius replies. He turns to Mr. Ollivander. "Good morning Mr. Ollivander. We are here for a wand holster. Do you have any Auror style wrist holsters? Preferable leather."

"Absolutely Mr. Black. I have brown and black leather holsters, which do you prefer?"

"Harry?"

"Black please"

"Here you go Lord Potter-Black. Why don't you put this on your wand arm wrist." He waits for Sirius to show Harry how to put it on under his sleeve. "Now, touch the tip of your wand to it, and then drop your wand."

"Drop it?"

"Yes drop it to the floor"

Harry looks apprehensive but does as Mr. Ollivanders instructs. As soon as he drops his wand however, it sheaths itself in the holster. Harry is looking at his wrist in awe.

"Lord Potter-Black, this is an Auror holster. Nobody can summon your wand while it's in the holster, it has an auto-recall function so if you drop it or someone disarms you, it will automatically return to the holster instead. To get your wand from the holster, simple flick your wrist slightly. Go ahead and try it."

Harry flicks his wrist, and the wand drops quickly into his hand. He drops it, and it automatically returns to the holster. He repeats it a couple times. "This is wicked! So much easier than carrying it in my pocket!"

Sirius laughs. "yes, and much less risk of injury to your bum. We'll take this holster Mr. Ollivander. Curiosity though, how did you know that Harry is now Lord Potter-Black. It's not widely known yet."

"Oh I have my ways Mr. Black. I hear a lot of people talking in my shop, they just don't think I'm listening. That will be eight galleons please."

Harry pays for the holster, and they head out to Flourish &amp; Botts. Sirius tells Harry to brows around while he looks for the books he needs. While looking through the defense section, he comes face to face with the last person he wanted to run into.

"Malfoy"

"Potter. What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be hiding away with those muggles"

"I haven't seen them in weeks. What are you doing in this section? I can't imagine you being interested in something as ordinary as defense. You should try the dark arts instead. Then again, I'm sure your father has all of those books already"

"How dare you!"

"Are you telling me it's not true? You really expect me to believe you don't have dark arts books at home? I might be a Gryffindor but I'm not stupid" As soon as Harry says that he turns around to walk away. As soon as he does, he hears Malfoy start to utter a spell Harry doesn't recognize. He flicks his wrist, turns back and throws up a shield.

"Is that all you got Malfoy?"

Before either of them can say or do anything else, Severus appears looking furious. "Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter, put away your wands this instant. This is a bookstore, not a place for a duel." When neither boy puts away their wand he steps closer "NOW!"

Harry drops his wand and it sheaths itself and Draco puts his wand in his pocket, looking wide eyed at the little trick Harry just did. Severus notices it to and can barely contain a grin, knowing that Harry did that on purpose. "Now I want you both to go to different parts of the store. If I see or hear of any more of this nonsense, you will both be intention for the first month of school, is that clear?"

"Yes Sir"

As Harry starts to walk away, Severus grabs him by the arm and pulls him towards a quieter part of the store, which happens to be the history section where Sirius is looking at books. Severus turns Harry sideways and lands a smack on his backside. Harry lets out a soft yelp, even though it wasn't an especially hard smack. Sirius looks at them in confusion. "What's going on?"

"Harry here decided to start an argument with Draco Malfoy which resulted in wands drawn by both of them." Severus replies with a glare towards Harry. "Harry, I heard the conversation you were having. You should have walked away when you saw him, not goad him into a reaction. Don't play innocent; you knew he would draw his wand at that last comment. You were counting on it and ready to throw up your shield. If he starts the argument or fight, I most certainly expect you to stand up for yourself, but you will not start anything, understood?"

"Yes sir. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything" Harry replies, focusing hard on his shoes.

"Alright, you're forgiven. Come here child." Severus says with a fond smile, while grabbing Harry by the shoulders and pulling him into a quick hug.

"I have what I need, are you ready?" Sirius says with a smile.

"I am, I didn't see any new books that I really wanted to have" Harry replies with a smile. They find Remus and pay at the register.

Next they all head to the apothecary, where Harry refills his potions kit and Severus places an order for the school stores and one for his personal lab. Next they head to Gringotts.

"What do we have to do here Sirius?" Harry asks.

"We have to meet with Ragnok. There are some things we need to get on paper and settled before we all head to Hogwarts and can't easily come here. I'll explain once we're inside." Sirius says.

Once they are shown to Ragnok's office they all sit down.

"Ragnok, we need to take care of the Wizengamot seats. They've been vacant for too long, and I'd like to have those votes should we need them in the near future." Sirius says as soon as they are seated.

"Most certainly Mr. Black. Lord Potter-Black, you have four seats on the Wizengamot. The Wizengamot is like the wizarding court. All ancient and noble families have a seat, which is held by the Lord. However, you have to be over the age of 20 to be able to hold a seat. Since you are underage, you have the right to appoint a proxy. Usually this is your magical guardian, which until now was the headmaster. Since you have claimed all your lordships, you have the right to appoint any proxy over the age of 20. This proxy will vote on everything on your behalf, so you'll want to pick people who you trust to make the same choices as you would. Do you have preferences?"

"I do. I want Sirius, Remus and Severus to each have a proxy. Sirius for the Black Lordship, Remus for the Potter Lordship and Severus for the Peverall Lordship. Can one person have more than one proxy?"

"yes Lord Potter-Black."

"Then I want Sirius to also be the proxy for the Gryffindor Lordship."

The three men are looking at Harry in shock. Severus is the first to speak up. "Harry, are you sure you want me as your proxy? You don't know me as well."

"Yes Severus I'm sure. I trust you to make the right decision, but if I find that you aren't I can always assign a new proxy. I want Remus to have a proxy because I know he has a lot of the same beliefs on laws that I do, and I think the Wizengamot could do with a werewolf."

"Excellent Lord Potter-Black. I have filled out the papers here, I just need you to sign. If at any time you want to re-assign a proxy, please let me know and we will get the paperwork taken care off. Also, here is your post box. All your mail will be delivered directly to this box as soon as it's received. You will not get any mail by owl at Hogwarts unless it's delivered by Hedwig. All other owls will come to Gringotts, and we will filter out any howlers, cursed or poisoned letters and packages. I recommend putting this box in a secure place. You are the only one who can open it, and it can only be opened with the password and your magical signature. Just knowing the password will not open it. When you are ready to set the password, please touch the lid with your hand, say the password, and close the lid."

Harry reaches over, opens the lid, and touches it with his wand hand. "**marauders"**. He then closes the lid, and watches it flare slightly. He knows that sealing it with a parseltongue password makes it as safe as it can get.

"Very well Lord Potter-Black. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Actually, I have a question. Muggles used this thing called a credit card to pay for purchases at stores. Is there something like that in the magical world? I don't like carrying around my vault key all the time. Also, if there is, will it work in the magical and muggle world? It would make it so much easier." Harry asks.

Sirius, Remus and Severus are all looking at Harry in astonishment.

"Lord Potter-Black, we do have cards for the magical world, but they don't work in the muggle world. If you'd like, we can look into that and see if we can get it to work. If we can get it to work, we will draw up a contract and you will get a percentage of the sales from those cards since it is your idea. Let me get you a card for the magical world for now."

Fifteen minutes later, they are all back in the bank lobby. Harry decides he wants to look at the Black vault a little bit more and get some money out for when he needs cash. Sirius agrees to go to the vault with him while Remus and Severus wait in the lobby. Harry wants to go exploring through all the artifacts and books in the vault, but Sirius decides that Harry can do that when he's no longer grounded. Harry fills a pouch with coins, and then walks over to the jewelry chest. He picks out an assortment of Black cufflinks and tie pins. Sirius then ushers him out of the vault, and they make a quick stop at Sirius's vault.

Once they are back in the lobby, it is decided to go look for Harry's new trunk. Harry assumes it will be an easy purchase, but he has no idea how wrong he is about that. When they tell the sales lady that he needs a bigger trunk with different compartments and locking spells, she starts listing so many things that Harry is quickly lost. He looks at the three adults for help.

Sirius smiles. "I had this trunk over here when I was at Hogwarts. It's one of the more expensive models, but it is wonderful. There are eight compartments, each compartment has a different function. There is a compartment for books that will shelve your books in alphabetical order by topic. That compartment also keeps an index of the books, so you can tap the book on the index and it will push forward the book you want. It also has a food storage compartment, which is very useful. I used it to keep drinks cold in case I wanted something after curfew so we didn't have to sneak out as much. Then there is a clothing compartment which is huge. The whole trunk is wizarding space, so it's bigger than it looks. The clothing compartment is basically the size of your wardrobe at home, and you can hang all your clothes there without them getting wrinkled. This is useful since the wardrobes in the dorms aren't big enough for all your clothes, they'll barely hold your uniform. Then there is a jewelry compartment, which I just used for cufflinks and tie pins and such. I'm sure girls use this compartment a lot more than us guys do. The other compartments are just empty, and when you open them are each about the size of your current trunk. You can use each compartment for something separate. There is a small ninth compartment that will fit up to two brooms. It won't fit anything besides brooms, so it's not considered a compartment. But I'm sure you'll find it useful. The whole trunk is locked with a password and your magical signature, and then each compartment also has a password with your magical signature. If someone stole your trunk or tried to force it open, the trunk would automatically shrink and appear in your pocket. It truly is a wonderful trunk, and I don't know if you can get a better one. It is very expensive though, so you might want to decide on a different one."

Throughout Sirius' speech the sales lady has simply stood by smiling, knowing that Sirius is selling the trunk for her. They don't sell many of those trunks because of their price, but her boss will be very happy with her if she sells one.

Harry looks at the trunk, and after listening to Sirius' explanation of the trunk he knows it's exactly what he wants. "I'll take this one in black. Also, I'd like the initials HJPB on the side. Thank you."

"Certainly sir. Let me get that ready for you, and then you can shrink it to take it home." The sales lady returns with the trunk a few minutes later, and Harry is immediately in love with how it looks. He feels the gold letters on the side look good against the solid black of the trunk's elegant design. "Your total will be 5,689 galleons." Harry pulls out his Gringotts card and pays for the trunk, immediately shrinking the trunk and putting it in his pocket.

Once they leave the store, they realize it is close to lunch time, and head back to the Leaky Cauldron to floo home. Once they get home, Harry walks upstairs to un-shrink all his packages, leaving them all over the floor of his room. He knows he'll have plenty of time to unpack it all later, plus he wants to try out his new trunk.

After lunch Harry, Sirius and Remus head outside for the first defense lesson.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

The next week goes by fast in Harry's opinion. He loves the defense lessons in the mornings, and feels that he is really improving his knowledge and skill. In the evenings he voluntarily studies more spells and techniques, constantly asking Sirius and Remus questions while doing so. Severus has been busy finishing all the potions for the infirmary, and in the afternoons Harry has helped him. While it is supposed to be a punishment, and at first it really was, Harry has started to really like these afternoons. While he spends most of the time chopping or cleaning, Severus also shows him how the potions are made. He shows him the correct techniques for chopping, stirring and mixing. He also shows him what to look for to determine if the potion is ready for the next step. During one of these afternoons during the last few days at Black Manor, they have to let the potions simmer for about an hour, and they both find comfortable seats in the lab.

"Harry, I have to apologize to you. All these things that I've been showing you the last few weeks are things you should have learned your first year. I taught all of these methods and techniques. Now I know you didn't pay attention and came to class unprepared which accounts for why you didn't learn like most other students, but I also should have tried harder. As a teacher, it is my job to ensure everyone learns. That means that if I notice a student not trying, I need to encourage that student to try. With most of the students I do that, but with you I didn't. Instead I punished you for not knowing, and I punished you for being who you were. I turned a blind eye to the fact that you simply didn't know what you were doing wrong instead of trying to teach you. I'm glad we got to spend these few weeks fixing that mistake, even if you were only in here because you were being punished."

"Severus, thank you for the apology. I know I didn't try in your class, and part of it was because you were so mean to me. But I didn't try in any of my classes, so that is not an excuse. Hermione learned all of this in class, and you weren't nice to her either. I promise to work harder though, in all of my classes. I know now that those compulsions made me act more like Ron, but now that I no longer have those, I find that I enjoy learning new things. I don't think potions will ever be my favorite subject, but now that I understand it better I don't hate it like I used to. And I know this was supposed to be punishment, and at first I really saw it that way and resented having to be here, but I now I don't mind. I've actually enjoyed working in here with you these last few weeks."

"I'm glad to hear that Harry. And you'd better try in all your classes or you'll have three guardians who will be more than happy to ground you until you do better" Severus says in a teasing tone.

Harry laughs. "Yeah I guess you're right. I don't mind though, I'm looking forward to having you all there. It will be hard to get used to though, I'm used to being able to get away with things but now with you all there I have a feeling I won't be able to anymore."

"It will be a lot harder, I can guarantee that. But Harry, we won't be watching your every move. We know you are a teenager, and we know you will get up to mischief at times and that is perfectly alright. We're not going to punish you every time you get points taken away or get detention. The only times we'll step in is if it's something big or if you get a lot of detentions. Basically if it's something the school would have informed your parents about, we will be stepping in, but if it's something that the school normally doesn't inform the parents about, we won't do anything either. That doesn't mean I won't be strict with you if I find you wandering the halls at night though. That really is a habit you need to break. Hogwarts is a magical castle, and it's not safe to be out after curfew. There is a reason we have curfew, and we expect you in your dorm or common room at that time."

"I understand Severus. I was a little worried you guys would lecture me about every little thing but I'm glad you won't." _And if I go wandering, I will just make sure not to get caught _Harry thought.

"Have you given any more thought to possible re-sorting at the start of term? If you want to do it, I'll need to know before you leave for the Burrow."

"I've thought about it. I know my friends won't care what house I'm in, but at the same time I'm Lord Gryffindor so I know that at least some part of me belongs in Gryffindor. Can we talk about it tonight?"

Later that evening they are all seated around the fireplace when Harry decides to bring up the sorting.

"What do you all think about me being re-sorted?"

"It's your choice pup. We can't make the decision for you. If you are happy in Gryffindor, stay there. But if you feel that you might belong somewhere else, ask for the resort."

"I don't know where I belong. I mean, when I got sorted as a first year, the hat took a long time to decide. It thought I could be good in Slytherin as well. But I had already made friends with Ron, and then Malfoy was acting really arrogant. Ron had told me that there weren't all bad wizards like Voldemort were in Slytherin and I didn't want to be in the same house as Malfoy, so I asked the hat to put me anywhere but Slytherin. But I've changed a lot since first year, and I'm not so sure anymore. I mean, I still don't want to be in Slytherin simply because I don't want to have to share a dorm with Malfoy, but what about Ravenclaw or Hufflepuf? How do I know I don't belong there instead?"

"Harry, you'd do well in Slytherin during normal times, but there are a lot of death eater children in Slytherin. There are some in every house that turn dark, but I don't know how safe you'll be in Slytherin." Severus says. "Normally I would advise against picking a house based on who is in it, but in this case I'd rather you have a safe common room and dorm to go to. If you were sorted into Slytherin, in would divide the house between those that support you and those that hate you because you defeated the Dark Lord numerous times."

"Pup, I think you'd be good anywhere. You are brave like a Gryffindor, even without the compulsions. You are intelligent like a Ravenclaw and you love to learn. You are incredibly loyal, which would make you good for Hufflepuf. And you are cunning like a Slytherin, even though I agree with Severus that you might not be safe there."

"Cub, we love you no matter where you go. If you do end up in Slytherin, we will make sure you are as safe as possible there. Your true friends will love you no matter what house you end up in. It is your decision on whether you want to change it or if you want to stay in the Gryffindor dorms."

"I've really been thinking about it. I know I'm a Gryffindor, but a part of me wants to know that I truly belong there even without all the compulsions. Can I turn down the resort if it sorts me somewhere I don't want?"

Sirius and Remus look at Severus, since neither of them know the answer to that. Getting re-sorted is rare. "No you can't. Once the hat determines where you belong, that's where you'll go. Re-sorts are rare because most people don't change that much to need a re-sort while at Hogwarts. However, it does happen. It's usually a muggle born or muggle raised student when it does happen, because sometimes the student changes a lot once they learn about the magical world and start using their magic. However, you have proven before that you can talk the hat into avoiding a particular house so if you truly didn't want to go somewhere I'm sure you could tell the hat."

"I think I want to be re-sorted. I just want to know that I truly belong where I am, and that I belong there because of who I really am, not because of who someone else wants me to be. Would I be sorted at the same time as the first years? How does that work?"

"Yes, you will be. You will sit with Gryffindor until all the first years are sorted, and then the headmaster will call you up to the front. He will explain that a head of house has requested for the hat to determine if you still belong in Gryffindor. Nobody will know that you requested it, since I will be the one making the request. I will tell the headmaster that I feel you have changed over the years, and that maybe you aren't as much of a Gryffindor anymore. You are not supposed to tell anyone you are going to be re-sorted, that way if you are re-sorted into Gryffindor your housemates won't resent you for thinking about leaving. Once you are re-sorted you will either return to Gryffindor, or your robes will immediately change to your new house and you will sit with your new house."

"That sounds pretty simple. I'm glad nobody will know I requested it. I would feel bad and I really don't want any more talk about me around the school."

"Do you get talked about a lot?" Sirius asks, looking concerned.

"More than most people. My first few months of my first year were pretty bad because everyone knew who I was and wanted to see what I was like. Then after the stone incident everyone was staring again. Then during second year when everyone thought I was the Heir of Slytherin it was really bad. Everyone always seems to know what I'm doing."

"I remember the Heir of Slytherin nonsense. It just proves that people will follow other peoples' thoughts and opinions entirely too easily without really thinking it through themselves. I think your popularity will swing back and forth a lot." Severus says.

"Don't let it bother you pup. People will always talk, but it's the people who are close to you that matter, not complete strangers."

"Yeah I know. It bothers me but I know that it will always be like that, no matter what I do or say, simply because I'm The Boy Who Lived. I've just learned to live with it. Well, I'm going to bed, I'm tired. Goodnight." Harry says while getting up.

"Good night pup. Tomorrow after lunch I'll help you pack your trunk. Severus said he's done in the lab, and we need to see if you need anything else before school starts."

"Alright Sirius. Goodnight."

The next afternoon Sirius and Harry are standing in the middle of Harry's room in front of his trunk, with all of Harry's belongings spread out all around them. Remus decides to go up to Harry's room and see if he can help with anything. When he walks into Harry's room, his jaw drops. "What in the world is going on here?"

"We're packing Remus. Right now we have divided everything in piles based on the compartment we want it to go in. We're just trying to decide where to start."

"I would start with the first compartment."

"That's a good idea Remus." Harry flicks his wand and all his books pack themselves into the compartment. Harry touches the lid, says the password in parseltongue, and closes it. He then taps the lid twice with his wand to open it in the second compartment. He keeps doing this until all his belongings are packed in all the compartments. "That is so much easier than packing by hand! I can't believe the amount of things that will fit in this trunk. It makes me love being a wizard." Harry says with a smile.

Sirius laughs at him. "And you should be happy there's a featherweight charm on the trunk so you don't have to lift it! You'd break your back if you tried without it."

"Haha very true padfoot! I'm going to shrink it anyway so it doesn't matter. Can I pack my broom in here? I know I'm not allowed to use it until school starts, but I'm not taking my trunk to the Burrow anyway."

"Why are you not taking your trunk to the burrow?"

"Oh Remus I've decided to just take a bag with some clothes to the Burrow. I don't need my broom or my books, so there's no point in taking all of that. I have a couple changes of clothes over there on the bed that I'm taking and the rest is going to school with Sirius when you all leave."

"That's a good idea. Why don't you pack that bag so that you have it ready for tomorrow? And yes, since you are not taking your trunk you may pack your broom. I'll go get it for you."

Remus returns a few minutes later with Harry's broom, right when Harry finishes packing his bag for the Burrow. He puts his broom in his trunk and closes the lid, effectively locking it.

"Now Harry, I trust you not to take your broom out of that trunk until you are at Hogwarts."

"I won't Remus, I promise. I can wait a week to fly again. Can we go downstairs and have hot chocolate and just hang out? It's my last night here and I want to just enjoy it. The Burrow is going to be crowded, and after that I'll be at Hogwarts until Christmas so I won't get any privacy then either."

"Sure pup. You do know that if you ever need to get away from everyone you can come to our rooms, right? You already have your own room in my quarters and you're always welcome there."

"I have my own room?"

"Yes pup, you do. The headmaster had to give me family quarters which come with kids and guest rooms because of you. Because of the trial he has to acknowledge that I'm your guardian. It's nice because the living room and kitchen are also bigger in the family quarters. The heads of house have their rooms near their house common rooms, but all the other teachers' rooms are in the staff tower. We all share a common room, and then there's doors all around the common room that lead to the staff quarters. Since you will have access to my rooms we will have to discuss some additional rules when you are there, since you'll be seeing and hearing things in the common room that shouldn't be shared with others. Teachers come there to relax."

"That's fine Sirius, I won't tell anyone anything I hear. I like being able to come to your rooms whenever I want! Will you be sharing with Remus?"

"Not officially. Since we are not married we each have our own rooms. But Remus' rooms are mostly empty since all his belongings are in my rooms. All the teachers and staff know we are together, so they all expect us to stay in the same rooms."

"That makes sense. So Severus doesn't share your common room and tower?"

"No, his rooms are in the dungeons by the Slytherin common room. He has access to the common room in the staff tower, and he often spends time there in the evenings. There is a floo in the common room that each head of house can use to get to the common room from their rooms so they don't have to walk through the whole castle to get there, and if they are needed they can quickly get back."

"That's a good system." While talking they have made their way to the living room, where Severus is already sitting on the couch reading a potions journal. Harry plops down on the couch right next to him, put his feet up and leans into his side. "Whatcha reading?"

"A potions journal. Are you comfortable?" Severus replies sarcastically, looking at Harry who is now fully leaning against him.

"Very. You make a good pillow."

"I'm glad you think so, however, I am not a pillow. Why don't you move over a bit and lean against the couch?"

"Oh fine. You're no fun." Harry says while moving over a little bit. From the corner of his eye he sees Sirius trying to hide his laugh. Remus is just shaking his head.

Once Dobby comes in with hot chocolate, Harry shifts so his feet are back on the couch. He is leaning against the arm rest, and slowly starts to push his feet under Severus' legs.

"Young man, what do you think you are doing?"

"My feet are cold."

"Then go get your slippers. I'd like to sit here and read or talk in comfort, not be poked by your feet."

"What has you so prickly today? I did this last week and you didn't say anything!"

"I'm not prickly. If you wanted to put your feet there, you should ask first. It is not polite to just put them there." Severus replies with a glare towards Harry.

_Geez, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. I guess I'll go sit with Sirius and Remus, at least they won't bite my head off._ Harry gets up from the couch and squeezes himself in between Sirius and Remus.

"Harry" Remus lightly admonishes before moving over slightly. Harry just smiles up at him and cuddles into Sirius' side. He then puts his feet up and slides them under Remus' legs. Sirius lifts up his arm and puts it around Harry's shoulder.

"See Severus, this is how it's done. You need to lighten up a bit." Harry says. Sirius taps him lightly on his bum.

"That's not nice Harry, apologize."

"I'm sorry Severus. I was just trying to cheer you up a bit."

"Apology accepted Harry. I'm just not looking forward to going back to Hogwarts tomorrow evening."

"Well why don't we forget about all that, and just enjoy the evening?" Remus suggests.

The rest of the evening is spend talking and playing games, with no further mention of the next day.

The next morning is hectic at Black Manor. Harry is running up and down the stairs, packing last minute items he forgot the day before. He is also going through the library and taking all the books he wants to take with him to school and packing them. While Harry is doing that, Severus, Remus and Sirius are all packing as well. Harry is expected at the Burrow around lunch time, while Severus, Remus and Sirius are planning to go to Hogwarts just before dinner.

Sirius hates packing, and he's helping Harry find everything around the house. When Harry and Sirius collide in the middle of the hallway when both turning the corner in opposite directions at the same time, Remus has finally had enough.

"Enough you two. You are running around like crazy and there is no reason for it. Sirius, you need to finish packing. Harry, I think you have everything but if you forgot something we can come back on a weekend and get it. Now stop running and find something calm to do."

Sirius and Harry look at each, grin, and then continue in the direction they were going. Not much later Sirius is done packing, and Harry is laying on the couch in boredom. Sirius sees his opportunity and starts tickling Harry. The tickling soon turns into wrestling and they are both rolling on the ground. Right when Remus walks in, they roll into a side table and knock over a vase which shatters to the ground.

"I don't believe this is considered something calm. Harry, Sirius, go pick a corner and stay there for fifteen minutes. I think a few minutes to calm down will do you good. After that we can all have lunch before Harry leaves for the Burrow." Remus shakes his head in exasperation. He knows they are just letting off steam and trying to have some fun, but he doesn't want either of them to get hurt. He fixes the vase and goes back to packing.

After lunch, Harry says goodbye to Severus. Since nobody knows that Severus has been staying with them at Black Manor he isn't going with them to drop off Harry. To Severus' surprise Harry gives him a big hug before turning towards the fireplace. Remus and Sirius smile at him, and tell him they'll be back soon. Harry, Remus and Sirius all head through the floo to the Burrow.

"Harry!" Ron shouts as soon as Harry steps through. "Oi Ronnikins, let the man get out of the fireplace first before you attack him!" Fred (or is it George) shouts.

Mrs. Weasley walks over to Harry and gives him a big hug. "It's good to see you Harry, why don't you take your things upstairs? You are staying in Ron's room again."

Once the boys are upstairs, Sirius and Remus sit down at the table with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.

"Molly, Arthur, I just want you to know that we appreciate you letting Harry stay here. Now, Harry got into a little bit of trouble a few weeks ago and he is still grounded. He is not allowed to fly, and if you need help with any chores you let him know. He has finished all his summer homework already, so he won't have to worry about that."

"No flying at all? So I take it he didn't bring his broom? I noticed he didn't have his trunk."

"No Arthur, no flying at all. We are taking his trunk to Hogwarts with us, since he didn't need his broom or any of his books here. He just has what he needs for the week. If he's missing anything, let one of us know and we'll get it to him."

"Well, the boys will be disappointed Harry can't fly with them but I'm sure you have your reasons. We'll make sure he doesn't fly a broom. We are going to Diagon Alley tomorrow, I'm assuming it's alright for Harry to come with us even though he already has all his supplies? Hermione will be joining us too."

"Yes that's fine. Harry has some pocked money in case he wants to buy something. Now we need to head back home to finish packing before leaving for Hogwarts. Let me say goodbye to Harry real quick."

A few minutes later Harry walks back into the kitchen and gives Sirius and Remus a big hug. "I'll miss you guys but I'll see you next week."

"We'll miss you too Harry. You are going to Diagon Alley tomorrow and Hermione will be there as well. I expect you to be on your best behavior. If we find out you caused problems we won't be happy and we'll bring you to Hogwarts early. Use the two way mirror I gave you, or ask to use the floo if you need us for anything. Love you pup."

And with that, Sirius and Remus floo back to Black Manor. Later that evening Sirius, Remus and Severus lock up the manor and apparate to Hogwarts. Meanwhile, Harry is enjoying his time at the Burrow. He has played Exploding Snap and Chess, and Mrs. Weasley has not asked him to do a single chore.

The next morning they all go to Diagon Alley. Harry is happy to see Hermione, and gives her a big hug.

"Harry! I hope you didn't get into too much trouble? Sirius looked furious when you left my house!"

"You went to Hermione's?" Ron cut in. "Why did you go there and not come to the Burrow sooner?"

"I'm sorry Ron, I didn't go there long. I was actually grounded and I wasn't supposed to leave, but I had already planned to go to Hermione's for a bit so I went anyway. Sirius caught me and took me back home. I had planned to come to the Burrow at some point, but because I was grounded I didn't get to come until now"

"How mad was Sirius?" Hermione asks, looking slightly worried.

"Really mad. I got grounded for the remainder of the summer, and I'm not allowed to fly until we get back to Hogwarts. It was stupid, I shouldn't have gone. But let's talk about something more fun, how was your vacation?"

And just like that, the topic changes. By the time they have reached Flourish &amp; Botts, Hermione and Harry are discussing the classes they will be taking the following year.

"Hey mate, do we need a new Divination book or is it the same?" Ron calls over to Harry.

"I don't know Ron, I'm not taking Divination. I've decided it's a useless class. I'm taking Ancient Runes instead." Harry replies, turning back to his conversation with Hermione. They are looking at books about runes used specifically for adding wards.

"What do you mean you dropped Divination? We were supposed to take that together! And you can't just take fourth year Ancient Runes so are you taking it with the third years?"

"No Ron, I've had tutoring in Ancient Runes this summer so I'm completely caught up and taking it with the fourth years. I'm not going to waste my time in Divination."

"I don't understand you. You've changed. Divination is an easy class, last year you would never have taken a class like Ancient Runes instead." Ron says softly, but loud enough for Harry and Hermione to hear. They just look at each other and then go back to their discussion on a book they found. Harry ends up buying the book since it looks interesting. He never realized runes could build such strong wards, and he has a feeling he'd eventually need the information.

The group goes from store to store to get everything they need. Harry doesn'tt buy anything else besides the book on runes, but he is enjoying looking at everything. He loves looking around at Diagon Alley, even if he isn't there to buy anything. Ron keeps glancing at Harry throughout the day, but he doesn't say anything else.

The rest of the week is spend hanging out around the Burrow. Since Harry isn't allowed to fly, they find other things to do. Ron hasn't finished his summer homework yet, and spends most of the days inside working on his assignments while Harry is outside with Fred and George. He has grown to really appreciate the Twins and their easy going attitude. Ginny tries to join them, but when the twins noticed how annoyed Harry is getting with her constant flirting, they tell her to go away.

September 1st finally arrives, and Harry is excited to get to Hogwarts. He is tired of having to Occlude all the time at the Burrow, and without being able to drop his shields at least once a day, he is developing a chronic headache. There had been a couple mornings where Mr. Weasley had noticed Harry's fatigue and had let him sit in the study by himself to get some quiet time. The Burrow is in complete chaos with everyone trying to get ready to leave for the train. As usual they are running late, and they make it to the train with only a few minutes to spare. Harry immediately goes to find Hermione, whom he finds in a carriage with Neville and Luna. Soon they are joined by Ron and Ginny.

The ride to Hogwarts is fairly quiet. They get the customary visit by Malfoy when they are getting close to Hogwarts. He makes the mistake of insulting Harry's parents, Sirius and Remus and Harry disarms him, followed by a quick stinging hex that sends Malfoy stumbling back into the hallway. Harry throws his wand back at him, and tells him not to come back. He shuts the door to the compartment and sits back down, acting as if nothing has happened. They are all staring at Harry in shock.

"Mate, that was wicked but how did you learn how to do that?" Ron says in astonishment.

"Yeah Harry, that hex isn't taught until fifth year, how do you know it?" Hermione asks.

"Oh, Sirius and I did some dueling over the summer. I must have picked it up then. It's not a very hard hex." Harry says, shrugging.

"How did you practice dueling? We're not supposed to do magic over the summer, remember?" Ginny asks.

"The Ministry can't track who does magic in a magical home, so you can do as much magic as you want. You guys can do magic at the Burrow and the Ministry would never know. They trust parents to control the use of magic within their own home. It's only in muggle homes and neighborhoods that it's a problem because of the Statute of Secrecy. Sirius didn't care if I used magic as long as I didn't try anything new without an adult there."

"I wish my parents were that cool about it. They take away our wands at the beginning of the summer" Ron grumbles.

Harry simply shrugs in reply and turns back to the book he had been reading. Not much later they all get up to change into their school robes. Once they arrive at Hogsmeade, Harry gives Hagrid a quick hug and continues with his friends to the carriages. Harry walks into the Great Hall, laughing along with his friends at the sullen look on Malfoy's face. They take their seats at Gryffindor table, and keep talking until Dumbledore asks for silence and McGonnagal comes in with the first years. Harry glances up at the head table and smiles at Sirius, Remus and Severus who are all sitting next to each other. Sirius winks back at him before turning to the sorting.

Before Harry knows it the sorting is over, and Dumbledore asks for silence again.

"Now as some of you know, but many of you don't, each Head of House has the ability to question a student placement in one of the houses. If he or she believes the student has changed over the years, or was simply sorted in the wrong house, he or she can request a re-sort. It is rare for this to happen, but not entirely uncommon since you all get sorted when you are 11. You all go through changes between your first and seventh year, some more than others. It has been many years since a Head of House has requested a re-sort, but this year Professor Snape has done so. The student's parents or guardians can prevent a re-sort, but in this case the guardian of the student has given his permission. Students are generally not told about it until the Welcoming Feast, unless their parent or guardian chooses to tell them. Will Harry Potter please come up here?"

The Great Hall had gone so quiet, you could have heard a pin drop. Harry's friends are all staring at him in shock. He shrugs his shoulders and whispers to them "I didn't know" and then walks up front.

"Now Harry, please place the sorting hat on your head, and we will see what it has to say"

Harry sits down on the stool and the hat is placed on his head, and immediately the hat starts talking to him. Harry knows nobody but him can hear the conversation.

"Ah, Mr. Potter. Looking to be re-sorted?"

"I didn't know much about the wizarding world or the houses last time you sorted me. I just want to know that I am where I belong"

"Yes, yes, you've changed. You are different from before. This is difficult, very difficult."

"How is it difficult?"

"Well, I'm not sure where to put you. You are still brave like a Gryffindor, but you are also intelligent like a Ravenclaw and you want to learn. You are as loyal as a Hufflepuf, and you are cunning like a Slytherin. I think you'd be great anywhere."

"That isn't helpful. I love Gryffindor and I don't really want to be in Slytherin. It's not that I don't want to be a Slytherin, but I fear I might not be safe there because of the current students. But if I'd be better for Ravenclaw or Hufflepuf, I'd be alright with that. So please just put me where I'm best suited."

"Mr. Potter, I think I will do that. I think you have the ability to change this school for the better, and maybe even achieve some sort of house unity which we will all need in the years to come. Yes, I think I've decided." And then the hat says out loud for everyone to hear "GRYFFINDOR, SLYTHERIN, RAVENCLAW, HUFFLEPUF!"

Everyone, including the teachers are looking at each other in confusion. Harry looks back at Sirius in confusion. Sirius just shakes his head, obviously confused as well.

"Well that is most unusual! I think we need to ask the hat what he means" Dumbledore says, looking slightly shaken. "Sorting Hat, what do you mean?"

"Well Mr. Potter here is equally suited for all four houses! In the rare instance that this happens, the student will be a member of all four houses, and will have access to all four common rooms. He or she will have a private bedroom, which will have a magical door that will lead into each of the common rooms, and will allow him access to his room from each common room. Since Mr. Potter is male, he will be assigned a male Head of House. This should be a current Head of House from one of the four houses. Mr. Potter will wear the Hogwarts crest on his robes, instead of a single house one, and he will have all black robes instead of the color of his house."

"What about Quidditch and house points? Where do I sit in the Great Hall" Harry asks.

"You may play Quidditch for the house which you came from, which for you would be Gryffindor. You can't gain or lose points, as it would be lost/gained equally for all four houses and therefore not have a point. You may sit at whichever table you want. To keep your schedule easy, you will follow classes with the Gryffindors since that is what you are accustomed to."

Most of the Great Hall is staring in shock at Harry. Harry takes off the hat and turns around the look at Dumbledore. As soon as he does that, he feels himself quickly surrounded by magic, and he notices that his robes have changed.

"Well, that is most unusual but we will follow school policy on this. Mr. Potter, please return to your seat. Remain after the Feast and we will show you your new room. I daresay the castle has already provided you with one and ensured all your belongings are there." Dumbledore says.

Harry returns to his seat, still slightly in shock. He sits down, but turns towards the front as Dumbledore starts speaking again.

"This year, we will have something exciting going on! We will be hosts to Beauxbaton and Drumstrang, as Hogwarts will be hosting the Triwizard Tournament!" Gasps went up around the Great Hall as many students recognized what this was. "For those of you who don't know, the Triwizard Tournament is a tournament between the three schools. It has three tasks and three champions, one from each school, who will compete in this task. Now these tasks can be extremely dangerous, and entering in this tournament should not be taken lightly. For this reason, only students age 17 and over may enter. The other schools will be arriving a week before Halloween. After this, the Goblet of Fire will be made accessible for all those who wish to enter, officially marking the start of the tournament. On Halloween, the Goblet will announce the three champions. We will announce more about the tournament when we come closer to the date. Unfortunately, because of the tournament, there will be no Quidditch this year."

Loud groans and complaints are heard all over the Great Hall. Harry looks defeated, as he had been looking forward to Quidditch this year.

"Now, I'm sure everyone is hungry and with all the excitement we've already had tonight, it's time to start the feast!" Dumbledore claps his hands, and food appears on the tables.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Harry starts piling food onto his plate in an almost mechanical manner. He isn't really paying attention to what he is grabbing, as his thoughts are on the sorting. _How is this going to work? I don't really belong to any house since I belong to all of them, so will they all accept me or will I be considered an outsider everywhere? Why does it always have to be me that these things happen to? I just wanted a nice, quiet year at Hogwarts where all I had to worry about was school, Quidditch and having fun with friends. At least I can't compete in the Tournament._

Harry is shaken out of his thoughts by Hermione shaking his arm. "Harry, are you okay? Have you heard anything we've said?"

Harry looks around to see everyone close to him staring at him. "Sorry guys, I was just thinking about everything that's just happened. I never expected the re-sort to place me in all four houses!"

"That is a little different mate. But at least you get your own room!" Ron says.

"Yeah, that is nice. And now I can see what the other common rooms are like!" Harry replies with a smile.

"We'll miss you in the dorm though mate. Just know that you are always welcome there! Just because you don't sleep there anymore doesn't mean we'll forget about you!" Dean chimes in. Neville, Seamus and Ron all nod in agreement.

"I think re-sorts are always hard. I remember my gran telling me a story once from when she was in school. Some girl got re-sorted from Gryffindor to Slytherin! She said the girl had a really hard time at first, but eventually they realized the hat was right and she really belonged in Slytherin. At least you are still a Gryffindor as well." Neville says with a smile.

"Yeah. I'll just have to see how it's all going to work. I'm sure it will take time to get used to. So what's up with there not being any Quidditch this year? I was really looking forward to it!" Harry replies in an attempt to change the topic. It seems to work, because everyone starts complaining about that.

"It's not fair. We can't compete in the tournament, and now we can't play Quidditch either!" Ron pouts.

"You'd actually want to compete in the tournament?"

"Well off course! It'd be wicked to get to do all those things, and it's a 1,000 galleon price! Plus imagine how popular the champion will be. I bet you want to compete, don't you Harry?"

"Actually, no I don't. I just want a calm year at Hogwarts. I don't want to be a champion, I'd rather just watch."

Ron looks at Harry appraisingly, shrugs his shoulders and turns to Fred and George who are already trying to think of ways past the age line. Harry continues eating, and listens to the conversation at the table without really saying much.

Up at the Head Table everyone is discussing Harry's re-sort. "Who will be Harry's Head of House Albus, do you decide that?" McGonagal asks.

"Yes I do Minerva. Since it has to be a male, it will have to be either Filius or Severus. Does either of you gentlemen have a preference?"

"I don't Albus. I would love to be Mr. Potter's Head of House but I will be okay with whichever decision you make" Flitwick replies.

"It is your decision Headmaster" Severus says with a nod.

"Well, I believe Harry would be fine with either of you as his Head of House, but I can't forget the animosity you have always had towards the boy Severus. Filius, I think you should be Harry's Head of House. Sirius, since you are Harry's guardian, are you in agreement with this arrangement?"

"Yes Albus, that will acceptable. I think Harry will like having Filius as his Head of House." Sirius says with a smile. _And what Albus doesn't know is that Severus is already supportive of Harry, and now Filius will be an advocate for Harry as well. Harry could really benefit from Filius' Charms and dueling experience._

"So how will this work with points? Since we can't take or give them, how do we punish or reward Harry for minor things that we normally use points for?" Professor Sprout says from down the table.

"I will leave that up to the discretion of the teachers. If you feel that Harry misbehaves and there should be consequences, you'll have to come up with something else besides points. What if we had him write lines instead of taking away points, fifty lines for each five points we normally would take? We could allow him to hand those in at the next class period. You can each come up with rewards in your classes for when he would normally be awarded points. You can be creative with those."

"That is a good idea Albus. We should mention this to Harry after the Feast so that he is aware of these changes. It would also show to the other students that just because he can't have points given or taken, there are still consequences if he acts up and still rewards when he does something good." Remus says.

Not much later, all the students are done eating and Albus dismisses everyone up to their dormitories. Harry waits at the table until most students are gone, and then makes his way to the front.

"Well my boy, why don't we go see about your new room? Sirius, Remus, why don't you join us?" Albus says with a smile.

"I'd like to join as well Headmaster. After all, Mr. Potter will have access to the Slytherin common room and I would like to see how that works. I think Minerva, Filius and Pomona should join us as well since Mr. Potter will have access to their common rooms too" Severus says.

"Very well, let us all go. The house elves have informed me that the room can only be accessed from a common room, there is no outside door. This is for security reasons, since we wouldn't want anyone to be able to get to Harry easily without knowing a password to a common room. Since the Ravenclaw common room is closest to us, let us go to the room from there."

The group follows the headmaster to the Ravenclaw dorms, and the common room falls silent when they all walk in. Harry looks around in interest, and notices that the common room has comfortable chairs and couches like Gryffindor, except everything here is blue. He also notices there are more study tables than Gryffindor has, and that they are all occupied. He can't imagine what those students are studying since classes haven't started yet. On the other end of the common room, in between the stairs to the boys and girls dorms there is a door. The headmaster walks towards that door and turns around.

"Students, this door will lead to Mr. Potter's dorm. Mr. Potter will set a password, and only he can enter this room. We don't want students to be able to use this dorm to get to other common rooms, so the door has been charmed to only allow Mr. Potter and the teachers access. If you knock on this door, Mr. Potter will know who is knocking and be able to answer it. Mr. Potter, please touch the door with your hand, and say your password."

Harry puts his hand on the door and says **sanctuary.** He wants to protect his room, and knowing that nobody knows parseltongue he feels safest using parseltongue as his password. He opens the door and steps through into his room. His jaw drops when he sees the size.

The room is huge. On the opposite wall there is a four poster bed, very similar to what he is used to in the dorms. There is a nightstand on both sides. Off to the side is a big wardrobe. Next to the wardrobe is another door. He walks over to the door and opens it to reveal a bathroom. He smiles, happy that he doesn't have to share the bathroom anymore. He notices that all his toiletries are already unpacked. He turns back and opens his wardrobe, to see that all his clothing is already put away. On the wall opposite from the wardrobe is a desk and chair, and next to the desk is a bookshelf which already holds his school books. He turns back to the adults, who have by now all entered the room and closed the door. "This is brilliant! I love how it has incorporated all four house colors into the room."

"This is really nice pup. I think any student would love to have this. Now how do you get to the other dorms since there's only one door?" Sirius says, looking around.

"Mr. Potter, do you see these four bricks here next to the door? Each brick has a house crest and color. You simple touch the house that you want to go to with your hand, and then open the door. The door will stay with the common room you last used. So for instance, since you came in through Ravenclaw, if you were to open the door without touching a brick, it would open to the Ravenclaw common room. Let's try each one so you can see each common room and the students will know this is your door." After saying this, Albus opens the door to the Hufflepuf common room and steps through. Once again Harry looks around in interest. He notices the Hufflepuf common room is very much like Gryffindor with a lot of comfortable seats, several fireplaces and a few study tables. He sees that there are no stairs to lead to the boys and girls dorms, instead there are just hallways. Albus proceeds to tell the students the same thing he told Ravenclaw. "Harry, since you already set your password, it will be your password no matter where you are. Let's go out through the portrait so that you can see where the entrance to this common room is. Also, you can enter any common room with the password for your room so that you don't have to memorize all the passwords for each house."

The group walks through the common room and out the portrait. Looking around, Harry sees that they are on the first floor. Albus leads the group down to the dungeons and to the Slytherin common room. When they enter the common room, everyone stops talking and looks at them. Severus immediately notices the extra door immediately next to the door to his own quarters. Albus once again explains the extra door to the students, and the group walks back into Harry's room.

"This is really weird to get used to. No matter where I enter from, the room is identical. I guess this will take some getting used to. Thank you for showing me the common rooms professor."

"You're welcome Harry. Now, Professor Flitwick will be your Head of House. You can reach him by knocking on his door in the Ravenclaw common room or by going to his office by the Charms classroom. I'm sure he will meet with you soon to go over everything. Now let us all go to the Gryffindor Common Room so I can show the Gryffindors the door to Harry's room, and then I think it's time for us all to turn in for the night since classes will be starting bright and early tomorrow."

They all exit Harry's room, and after Dumbledore gives his speech to the Gryffindors, all the teachers leave. Harry finds his friends sitting over by the fireplace and joins them. "Hey guys"

"Hey Harry. What's your room like?" Neville asks.

"I love it. The furniture is similar to what we have in the dorms, and the room has all the colors from all the houses. It also has a bathroom, since my only door opens into the common rooms and I don't have access to the dorm bathrooms. I can only access my room from a common room, and the door is magical so I only have 1 door that will give me access to all common rooms. Professor Flitwick is my new Head of House."

"What are the other common rooms like?" Ginny asks.

"Very similar to this, except for colors and a few small differences. Ravenclaw has more study tables, and Slytherin is more formal. But they all have couches and fireplaces and are decorated in their house colors. Well I'm going to finish unpacking and go to bed, I'm exhausted. I'll see you all for breakfast?"

"Sure Harry, good night"

Harry goes back to his room and falls down on his bed. He lays there for a few minutes before getting up and walking to the bathroom to get ready for bed. It doesn't take him long to fall asleep that night.


	17. Chapter 17

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Chapter 17

The following morning Harry is up early. He is excited for classes to start, and he gets dressed quickly. When he is done he looks at the clock and realizes he still has a half hour until breakfast will start, so he decides to go visit Sirius and Remus and see what their rooms look like. The night before Sirius had given him directions to the teacher's wing and he had given him the password. He said that once you were in the common room, the doors had names on them which would help Harry find the correct rooms. Since the teacher's wing is closest to the Ravenclaw common room, he decides to go that way. The few students who are in the common room when he walks through pay more attention to their books than to Harry, and within a few minutes Harry is standing in front of the teacher's wing. He says the password, and the door opens to reveal a large common room. He looks around in interest and notices how similar this common room looks to the student common rooms. There are several fire places with comfortable chairs and couches, and there are a few tables where teachers can work. Off to the side is a small kitchenette where Harry sees coffee and tea. The common room is mostly empty when Harry walks in, and the only teachers there are Severus and Professor Vector. Harry says good morning to them both and quickly finds Sirius' rooms. He would have said more to Severus, but he had learned over the summer that the man needed his morning coffee first, plus he doesn't want to give away that they are friendly. He knocks on the door and waits, knowing that Sirius isn't a morning person. A few minutes later he knocks again, and quickly the door is opened. A sleepy looking Sirius sticks his head out the door. "What is so urgent so early in the morning?"

"Sirius, it's me. Open the door, I want to see your rooms."

"Harry? What are you doing awake so early? Well come in. Remus is getting ready for class, I need to get in the shower and get ready."

Harry walks through the door which lands him in a small hallway. He walks through the hallway and finds himself in a living room. There is a fireplace off to the left with a couch and two armchairs around it. On the wall to his right are two doors. Sirius opens the first room to reveal a guest room.

"This will be your room whenever you want to stay here. We haven't decorated it yet, we thought you'd like to do that yourself."

Harry smiles, knowing that he has a room here, and he steps back out of the room.

"This next room is our room, which is off limits unless we are in there or we give permission for you to go in there, just like our room at home. There is a bathroom connecting our rooms, if you are in it, make sure to lock both doors. That door over there on the other side of the living room leads to a study, which is also off limits. I will show it to you later. It is big enough for both Remus and I, and it has two desks."

"This is really nice Sirius!" Harry says, smiling. The living room is decorated in blues and whites, which makes up for the lack of sunlight. On the far side of the living room Harry sees a double door which is open. He can see that it is the kitchen, and when he walks in, he sees that it also has a large kitchen table. That's where he finds Remus who is reading the paper and drinking tea.

"Good morning Remus. I came to check out your quarters. They are really big! How come there are no windows?"

"Good morning Harry. Yes they are. Because of where we are in the castle, we don't have any windows in any of the staff quarters. However, we are going to add magical windows, we just haven't had the time. They will look like a regular window, and they will show a view of the outside. We were thinking of having it overlook the lake and forest. What do you think?"

"I think that I love magic when you can create windows where there aren't any outer walls! The lake is beautiful to look at, especially at sunrise and sunset."

"Yes it is. So are you ready for your first day of classes?"

"I am. I'm anxious to get my schedule to see what I have first. Now that I don't have Divination there aren't really any classes that I dread going to, even though I'm still a little worried about Potions."

"There is no reason to worry Harry. If you are struggling, just ask Severus for help. We don't want the headmaster to get too suspicious, so he still won't treat you like he likes you in class, but he won't be like he was before. He discussed that with you, didn't he?"

"Yes, we talked about it. He said he won't be insulting and mean anymore and he won't single me out, but he will treat me like he does all the other Gryffindors. Since he can't take points from me anymore, it will make a big difference."

"Well then I don't think you have anything to worry about. Severus said you did really well with potions during the summer. He might not be able to act like he likes you suddenly, but he will help you if you need it even if he has to do it in private."

"I know, but it's still not my favorite class. I'll just have to see what happens. I'm going to head out and catch up with everyone at Gryffindor tower so we can go to breakfast. See ya later!" And with that Harry is out the door. Sirius walks into the kitchen a few minutes later.

"Did he leave already?"

"Yes, he said he was going to go catch up with his friends before breakfast. Are you ready to go down?"

"Yes, let me grab my things for class. Did you tell him he has you for his first period?"

"No, he'll find out along with everyone else. How do you think he'll take it when he finds out he has me, then you and then Severus right after lunch?"

"I think he'll be surprised. Let's go down and we can see his reaction."

In the meantime Harry has made his way up to Gryffindor tower. He has figured out that it is faster for him to go back to his room through Ravenclaw, and then enter the Gryffindor common room from there. He had ran into Luna in the Ravenclaw common room and he talked to her for a few minutes.

As soon as he walks into the Gryffindor common room Ron, Neville, Dean and Seamus are coming down the stairs on their way to breakfast. "Hey guys, heading to breakfast?"

"Hi Harry, yes we are. Are you joining us?"

"Sure Ron, let's go."

The five guys walk down to breakfast speculating about their classes. Neville is hoping they don't have potions first, and Ron is hoping they have DADA first thing. When they walk into the Great Hall, they see that Hermione is already there with her face buried in a book.

"Good morning Hermione" Harry says while sitting down across from her. "What are you reading?"

"Good morning Harry. It's our History of Magic book. Now that we actually have a good book and a good teacher I'm finding that I enjoy it a lot more!"

"I'll make sure to tell Sirius that he is already preferred over Binns before he has even started teaching" Harry says with a grin, sneaking a glance up at the Head Table.

"You do that Harry, just don't forget to call him Professor Black while in class or with other students."

"I forgot about that. I'll have to remember to do that, I have a feeling I'd get lines if I called him Sirius in class or if I called Professor Lupin Remus. Did I tell you what they came up with for me instead of points?"

"No, what are they doing? They have to be doing something to replace it"

Everyone else around them is listening to the conversation by now. "I got a note from Professor Flitwick last night. He's my Head of House now, and he wanted to let me know that instead of losing points I'd have to write lines. For every 5 points I would have lost, I now have to write 50 lines, which I'd have to hand it at the next class. It also said that instead of awarding points, teachers are supposed to reward me some other way but that is left up to the teachers on how they want to do that."

"I think that's a fair system" Hermione says, nodding.

"Yeah, I agree. I mean, it wouldn't be fair if I couldn't get in trouble like the rest of the students."

A few minutes later Professor McGonnagal comes around with the schedules. Professor Flitwick follows her with Harry's schedule, and he is happy to see that he really does have all his classes with the Gryffindors.

"Mr. Potter, are you free this evening after dinner? If so, could you please come to my office?" Professor Flitwick asks.

"Yes professor" Harry looks back down at his schedule and smiles. "Look, we have DADA first, then History of Magic, then lunch and then Potions. It looks like you got your wishes Ron and Neville"

"We should get going, we have about fifteen minutes before class but we still have to go back to the tower to get our books." Hermione says, looking at her watch.

They all get up from the table and start heading back towards Gryffindor Tower. Before they can make it out of the Great Hall however, they are stopped by Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle.

"Hey Potter, how does it feel to not belong anywhere?" Malfoy asks with a sneer.

"Malfoy. For your information I belong everywhere. That means I also belong in Slytherin and I'm now your housemate."

"You will never belong in Slytherin, we'd never accept someone like you."

"What do you mean someone like me?"

"You associate with mudbloods and blood traitors."

"Take that back Malfoy. I'd rather hang out with them than with someone like your father."

"What? It's what they are, and don't you dare say anything about my father. At least I have one! She's a mudblood and all those red heads are blood traitors."

By this point Harry, Ron and Malfoy have all drawn their wands, and the others have their hands on their wands, ready to draw quickly if needed.

"You take that back Malfoy. You don't want to go around insulting my friends." But before Malfoy has a chance to respond, a dark shadow falls over the group.

"What is going on here? Put those wands away!" Severus says sternly. "Mr. Potter, care to explain this?"

Harry dares to glance up and sees the stern look on Severus' face. "Malfoy stopped us from going back up to the tower sir, and then he started calling my friends names."

"Is that true Mr. Malfoy or do you have a different version of these events?"

"I didn't stop them from going anywhere. We were just talking and I pointed out the facts to Potter. I can't help that he doesn't like them."

"So it sounds like this was merely an argument. You are all lucky no hexes were thrown or you'd be in detention on your first day. Five points from Gryffindor Mr. Weasley, and five points from Slytherin Mr. Malfoy for drawing your wand on another student. Fifty lines of "I must not draw my wand on another student" by class tomorrow Mr. Potter. Now I suggest you all head to class."

Malfoy looks murderous at Harry and his friends, but listens to his Head of House and leaves for class. Unfortunately for all of them, they have DADA together. They quickly run up to Gryffindor tower to get their books and make it to class just in time. As Harry sits down next to Ron with Hermione on his other side, he lets out a deep breath. They are all panting slightly from trying to get to class on time. They have barely taken their seats when Remus starts class.

"Hey mate, did you notice that Snape took points from Slytherin? When has that ever happened?" Ron whispers to Harry.

"I don't know, but I guess he didn't have a choice? I mean, there were a lot of people that had seen the interaction and I noticed some other teachers close by. I'm sure they'll have the points back soon."

"Yeah I guess you're right. Still sucks to lose points before classes have even started."

"Mr. Weasley and Mr. Potter, may I suggest you stop talking and pay attention?" Both Harry and Ron startle slightly at hearing Professor Lupin so close to them.

"Sorry Professor" Harry and Ron both say. Professor Lupin doesn't acknowledge their apology but simple continues with his lecture. Harry grabs some parchment and a quill and starts taking notes. They are learning about shield spells, which Harry had already learned, but he also knows he has to know everything that was taught and he might learn something new. During his summer lessons in defense they had focused more on the practical application and not the theory.

"For the next class, I want three feet on the different shield spells and when you should be using each one. I also want you to list to pros and cons for each shield. You are dismissed. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Potter, please stay behind a moment."

Harry and Ron wait for everyone to leave class and then walk up to Professor Lupin's desk.

"Gentlemen, I'm disappointed that you felt the need to talk during the very first class. I expect I won't need to remind you again to pay attention?"

"No sir" Harry and Ron both say.

"Very well, you are dismissed. Keep in mind that next time I will take points"

Harry and Ron walk out of the class room where Hermione is already waiting for them. They all walk to History of Magic. Harry doesn't think his day could get any worse, having already gotten in trouble with both Severus and Remus, but he is very wrong.

"Hey guys, I'm going to stop in the bathroom real quick. Save me a seat, I'll be right there!"

"Sure Harry"

When Harry leaves the bathroom and continues his walk to History of Magic, he hears the buzz of a spell coming in his direction and throws up his shield. When he turns around, he sees Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle standing behind him.

"What do you want Malfoy, I'm trying to get to class."

"How did you know that shield? We just learned it in class?" Malfoy asks suspiciously.

"Does it matter? Now I'm going to continue to class if you don't mind. I'd rather not be late."

Malfoy looks at Harry in confusion, not understanding how Harry already knew that shield spell when he didn't know it the year before and he was supposed to have been at his muggle relatives all summer. By the time he realizes that Harry is gone it is already too late to stop him.

Unfortunately for Harry, the confrontation with Malfoy makes him five minutes late to class. He has never had Sirius as a real teacher before, but from what he had overheard over the summer Sirius was planning on being similar to Remus: Strict, but still approachable and fun.

"Mr. Potter, I'm glad you decided to join us. Please see me after class for your lines. Have a seat."

Harry sits down next to Ron, mumbling under his breath about the unfairness of it all.

"Quietly please Mr. Potter."

"Sorry Professor."

For the rest of class, Harry is taking notes with a sullen look on his face. Ron and Hermione occasionally shoot him worried glances, wondering what had happened to make Harry late to class. When class is over, Harry packs up his books and makes his way to the front to get his lines. Ron and Hermione decide to wait for him, and Sirius doesn't ask them to leave.

"Fifty lines of "I must be on time for class" by next class. Why were you late?"

"I'm sorry I was late sir. I stopped by the bathroom on my way here, and when I left I ran into Malfoy. We had an argument, and it caused me to be late."

"Was it just an argument or is there something you're not telling me? Were there wands involved?"

"It was just an argument sir. Yes there were wands involved but nobody got hurt"

"Very well. Since you were already warned about that this morning by Professor Snape, I am increasing your fifty lines from this morning to a hundred lines. I will inform Professor Snape to expect the extra lines. Now you three head on down to lunch."

Harry turns back and walks out of the classroom with his friends. Sirius looks after him, wondering what is going on with Harry that day for him to already be getting into trouble. He has a feeling Malfoy is to blame for both instances, but he can't just let it go without anyone accusing him of playing favorites.

When Harry gets down to lunch, Ron and Hermione both turn to him. "What really happened mate?"

"Malfoy tried to hex me, but I blocked it. He then tried to draw me into an argument again, and by the time I got to class I was late. It's not fair that I'm getting in trouble for that while Malfoy gets off free!"

"Maybe Professor Black will say something to Malfoy too" Hermione says, trying to console Harry a little bit.

"Maybe, but probably not. And now we have Potions with the Slytherins next. I really hope the rest of my day gets better."

"Well it can't get much worse mate" Ron says, slapping Harry on his shoulder.

In the meantime, Sirius has made his way to the Head Table. "Remus. Severus. How were your mornings?"

"Mine was alright, first year Gryffindor and Slytherin. Only had one melted cauldron so overall not bad."

"Mine was good. Had Fourth year Gryffindor and Slytherin first thing. Had to scold Harry and Ron for talking during class, which surprised me. They rarely talked during class last year. I had third year Hufflepuf and Ravenclaw after that and we studied Boggarts. That is always a fun class to teach since the students love it."

"You had to scold Harry? I wonder what's going on with him today. I had to punish him for being late to my class. When I asked him why he was late, he said it's because he had an argument with Malfoy in the hallway, and apparently wands were drawn again. That reminds me, Severus, I told Harry to get you a hundred lines instead of fifty since he was just reminded not to use his wand in the hallway earlier this morning."

"Very well. I will also have a word with Mr. Malfoy about this. That's twice in one day, we can't have this getting out of hand. I'm not sure what is going on with Mr. Malfoy, but it wouldn't surprise me if he started both incidents. From what I've overheard he may be jealous of Harry having access to all the common rooms. I'll find out."

"Excuse me gentlemen, but did you say Mr. Potter has already gotten in trouble several times today?" Filius says. "I am meeting with him this evening to go over my expectations of him as his Head of House, and just to get to know him. Is there anything I need to discuss with him?"

"No Filius, I think Harry might just be having a bad day. Both instances were related to Mr. Malfoy stopping him in the hallway. Both of them have been punished, which will hopefully prevent it from happening again. You may try to find out what really happened before History of Magic, since I have a feeling Harry wasn't telling me everything."

"Thanks Sirius, I'll see what I can find out. I'm looking forward to getting to know Mr. Potter better. He seems like an intelligent young man who has been through more than any other student his age."

By the time lunch is over, Harry is in a better mood. Knowing that he had gotten better in potions over the summer, he is hoping class will go well. Little does he know that maybe he should have just gone back to bed instead and try again tomorrow.

Professor Snape gives the standard start of year speech, and then instructs them to start on the potion on page thirty four in pairs. Harry is working with Ron, and Hermione is working with Neville. Harry occasionally glances up to see where the professor is, but so far he has stayed on the Slytherin side of the room. Harry notices the dirty looks Malfoy is sending him, but tries to ignore it.

"There are about thirty minutes left in class. You should all be starting the final steps of this potion. Once you are done, make sure to bottle and label it and then clean up your workstation. I will come around and collect the bottles." Professor Snape announces as he makes his way over to the Gryffindor side of the classroom. As soon as he turns his back on the back two rows, something comes flying through the air and lands in Harry and Ron's cauldron. They were just about to add the last ingredient, and the potion starts bubbling. Before either of them can react, the cauldron explodes and goes all over Harry. Ron had just stepped to the side to grab the last ingredient, and most of the potion misses him.

"Mr. Weasley, take Mr. Potter to the infirmary immediately!" Professor Snape yells after quickly casting a scourgify on the workstation and Harry. Ron supports Harry, who is now sporting boils all over his face and his robes are starting to smoke slightly, and they make their way out of the classroom and to the infirmary. "Ms. Granger, what happened?"

"I'm not sure professor. Their potion looked good and they were about to add the last ingredient when suddenly it started bubbling and exploded. I don't understand how that could have happened."

"Very well. Everyone, finish up your potions. Once your workstation is cleaned you may leave. I want a two foot essay on the deflating draught by next class."

As soon as all the students have left the classroom, Severus makes his way up to the infirmary. He finds Harry, Ron and Hermione quietly talking.

"Mr. Potter, how are you doing?"

"I'm alright sir. Madame Pomfrey was able to heal me fairly quickly. I'm waiting on Dobby to bring me clean clothes so that I may be discharged."

"I'm glad to hear that Mr. Potter. Can you explain to me what happened?"

"I'm not sure professor. We were working on the potion and everything was good, when suddenly something flew into our cauldron. I don't know who did it, but someone added something to make it explode."

"You're saying someone sabotaged your potion?"

"Yes sir. I have ideas on who would have done that, but I can't prove anything."

"Since we didn't see who did it, there is not much I can do. You and Mr. Weasley will return to my classroom at eight P.M. tonight to re-brew the potion. The only reason I'm allowing this is because several students mentioned that your potion looked right before it exploded."

"Yes sir, we will be there."

With that, Severus turns around and heads back to the dungeons to teach his next class. Ron has to go to Divination next, but Harry and Hermione both have a free period and head to the library to work on their homework until dinner.

After dinner, Harry makes his way to Professor Flitwick's office for his meeting. He is nervous since he has never really talked to the professor before outside of class.

"Good evening Harry, come on in."

"Good evening Professor." Harry replies while taking a seat in front of the desk. He looks around at the office, noting that he likes it. All the walls are covered with books, there are comfortable chairs by the fire that he could see himself sitting in to read, and the desk is covered in papers. Even the visitor's chair is comfortable.

"Harry, I wanted to meet with you to get to know you. Since I will be your Head of House for the next four years, I want you to feel comfortable coming to me with anything you might need. I also have expectations for all my students, and I wanted to go over this as well. How was your first day?"

"It was alright sir. I have definitely had better days, but overall I've also had worse ones."

"I heard you got into a little bit of trouble with Mr. Malfoy after breakfast and before History of Magic. What happened?" Flitwick asks, trying to keep the sternness out of his voice. He doesn't want Harry to feel like he is being accused.

"After breakfast was Malfoy being Malfoy. I had drawn my want but I wasn't planning on hexing him unless he hexed me first. Before History of Magic Malfoy tried to hex me from behind. I threw up a shield so he didn't succeed, but then he tried to start an argument. I walked away but ended up late to class."

"He hexed you? I will definitely have a word with his Head of House. That is unacceptable. Harry, whenever something like this happens, I want you to feel comfortable telling me. I promise to always listen to you. If you get in trouble and you come to me before I find out, your punishment will always be less than if you had kept quiet, alright?"

"I understand professor"

"Now I saw you changed Divination for Ancient Runes. I have to say I'm pleased by this, as I think Ancient Runes will really benefit you. You are a smart student Harry, you always have been. I believe if you applied yourself a little bit more, you could be at the top of your year. Because I want you to do the best you can, I will be watching your grades. If I notice that you are struggling in a class, I will find you a tutor. If you feel that you need extra help, please don't hesitate to let me know and I will get you that help. I have seen what you can do in the practical lessons Harry, but your theory work has never quite been up to the same level. I'm not asking you to get O's in everything, but I am asking you to try your hardest. Does that sound fair?"

"Yes professor, it does. If I have any problems or need help I will let you know."

"Excellent. Now I believe you have to be in the potions lab in a few minutes to re-brew your potion, so why don't you head on down to the dungeons. And don't forget, my door is always open and anything you tell me is confidential."

"Thank you professor." With that Harry gets up and heads down to the dungeons to re-brew his potion. He really isn't looking forward to it, as he still has a lot of homework to do. When he gets to the dungeons, Ron is already there waiting for him and they go into the classroom. Professor Snape is sitting at the desk marking papers, and they notice a cauldron is already set up for them.

"Mr. Weasley, Mr. Potter. You'll see that I've set out a cauldron and the ingredients. Please re-brew the potion and bottle it. Once you are done, clean up your workstation and you are dismissed."

"Yes Professor" the boys say in unison. They immediately get to work, knowing the potion will take about an hour to brew and not wanting to take much longer. They work quietly, the same way they had earlier that day. When they finish, they bottle the potion and Harry takes it up to Professor Snape.

"Here is our potion Professor."

"Thank you Mr. Potter. Once you are done cleaning your workstation, you are dismissed. I'm assuming Ms. Granger gave you the homework assignment?"

"Yes Professor, she did." At that Harry turns around, and with a flick of his wand their workstation is clean. He doesn't see Severus raising an eyebrow at that, as he is busy gathering his bag.

"Goodnight Professor."

"Good night Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley."

"Mate that was wicked how you cleaned the workstation like that!"

Harry simply smiles back at Ron and doesn't comment on it.

While walking back to the dorms, they realize that it is almost curfew so they have to hurry. They make it to the Gryffindor Common Room with a few minutes to spare.

"Harry, Ron! I didn't think you'd make it back on time. Did you get your potion finished?" Hermione asks upon seeing them.

"Yes we did. I think we did really well on it, don't you think so Harry?"

"Yes, we did. The color and consistency were right. I guess we'll just have to wait and see when we get our grade. I need to get my books to study, and then I might go do some homework in one of the other common rooms. I feel like I should spend some time everywhere and get to know the other houses."

"Alright Harry, we'll see you tomorrow."

Harry goes to his room, grabs his books to do his DADA homework and leaves for the Ravenclaw Common Room. When he walks in, people look up to see who is coming in but nobody pays him much attention or stares. He notices an empty seat at one of the study tables with a group of fourth and fifth year students, and walks over there.

"May I join you?"

"Off course! You're always welcome to sit with us." One of the girls says. "My name is Helena."

"Nice to meet you Helena. You're a fifth year, right?"

"Yes I am. If you ever need any help, I'm good at Ancient Runes, Arithmancy and Charms."

"Thank you. I might take you up on that offer at some point. I didn't take Ancient Runes last year, but I wanted to take it this year, so I studied the third year material over the summer. I'm hoping I'm caught up with the class since they've approved me taking it with the fourth years. I'm not taking Arithmancy but I'm planning on studying it at some point on my own."

"How come you didn't take it last year?"

"I took Divination. I didn't know much about the classes and that's what my friends were taking. After having her predict my death all year, I didn't want to do that again. My guardian suggested I take Ancient Runes, so he helped me catch up over the summer."

"I've heard about her death predictions. I personally never understood why anyone would take that class unless they already had Seer abilities. Well if you need any help, just let me know." And with that, she turns back to her books and continues her homework.

Harry starts on his assignment, and starts working. When he finishes two hours later, he realizes that he has finished the assignment much faster than he normally would have. When he thinks about it, he realizes how much quieter the Ravenclaw common room is compared to Gryffindor. People are still talking and playing games, but they are doing so more quietly to allow others to study. The Gryffindor tower tends to get rowdy in the evenings, with the exception of the weeks before exams when everyone is frantically studying.

"Helena, is it always this quiet in here?"

"Yes Harry, it is. Those that play games place silencing bubbles around them so they don't disturb those that want to study, and we try to keep our voices down. Why, is Gryffindor not the same?"

"No, it is always pretty loud in there. The only times it gets this quiet is close to exams when everyone is studying, but normally it's hard to focus in the Common Room."

"Oh. Well you're always welcome to come here if you need a quiet place to study or just want to hang out. You're part of Ravenclaw now."

"Thank you Helena. I have a feeling I'll be doing a lot of my studying here or in the library. I get distracted easily so I focus better when it's quiet."

Helena simply smiles at Harry and goes back to her work. Harry gathers his work, and with a quiet goodnight to everyone at the table he goes back to his room. He isn't really tired yet and he wants to spend some time relaxing before bed so he goes to the Gryffindor Common Room to see if any of his friends are still awake. He sees Hermione working on homework, and Ron playing exploding snap with Neville. He smiles at the familiar sight, and knows that he will still be spending a lot of time here with his friends. He joins Ron and Neville in the game, and soon they are all laughing.

Just before midnight Harry goes back to his room. He looks at his schedule for the next day, seeing that he has Charms, Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures and Astronomy. He pulls out his books and gets his bag ready for the next day, and then opens his wardrobe to lay out his clothes. When he does so, he suddenly remembers that his trunk was mostly unpacked when he got there yesterday, which confuses him because the trunk was locked and only he can open it.

"Dobby"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"I have a question. When I arrived here yesterday, my trunk was unpacked. How is that possible since it's protected with passwords and my magical signature?"

"Master Harry sir, Dobby unpacked the trunk sir. Dobby is bonded elf so Dobby can access master's trunk without needing password sir. When master and Dobby bonded, Dobby bonded to Master Harry's magical signature sir. Did Dobby do wrong?"

"No Dobby, you didn't. I was very happy to find everything unpacked. So because you are bonded to my magical signature, you can get past the wards on the trunk because it's tied to my magical signature?"

"Yes Master Harry sir"

"Thank you Dobby. It will be nice that you have access in case I ever need you to get something from there, and I really hate unpacking. Goodnight Dobby."

"Goodnight Master Harry sir."

Harry gets ready for bed, thinking that it is nice that Dobby is able to access his trunk. He knows Dobby would never do anything to any of his things, and he has to admit it is nice to have everything unpacked for him. As he gets into bed, he vows to make his next day better than this one had been.


	18. Chapter 18

Warning: Spanking towards the end of this chapter. If you don't like this, feel free to skip the last part of this chapter.

Chapter 18

The next morning Harry gets to breakfast early and sits down with Luna at the Ravenclaw table. He gets a few looks from other students who notice him sitting there, but nobody says anything. Harry talks with Luna throughout breakfast. When he gets up to go to Charms, Sirius stops him.

"Harry, do you have a minute?"

"Sure Professor" Harry says, following him out of the Great Hall and into an empty classroom.

"Harry, I know yesterday wasn't a good day for you. I also know Malfoy provoked you during both altercations. Severus had a talk with him and he asked me to have the same talk with you. If either of you draw a wand at another student one more time, you will find yourself in detention with professor Snape for a week, including Saturday. The only exception is if you use your wand to put up a shield to protect yourself. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir"

"I know you weren't at fault, but we have to stop this before it gets out of hand. Also, as your guardian I am letting you know that if I get a letter from the headmaster that you got detention for drawing your wand, I will consider that putting yourself in danger since you could get seriously injured. You will not like the punishment for putting yourself in danger. Is that clear?"

"Yes Sirius. I won't draw my wand on another student except to throw up a shield to protect myself."

"Alright, that's all I wanted to tell you. The headmaster heard about yesterday and passed a new rule that anyone who draws a wand on another student will have a letter sent home. He's hoping that if students get punished by their parents as well as the school it will deter most from doing it. Hexing one another can get someone seriously injured or killed, no matter how good you think you are. You should head to class. Why don't you stop by our quarters tonight? I miss seeing you around."

Harry gives Sirius a hug. "I'll stop by and bring my homework. I have a lot to do and that way I can stay for a bit. See you later!" With that Harry is out the door.

Harry's morning goes much better than before. He has Charms with Ravenclaw and Ancient Runes with Hufflepuf, so he doesn't see Malfoy at all. After Ancient Runes he is walking to lunch with some of the Hufflepuf students and Hermione, discussing what they learned in class. They had started on Runes for warding, and they are all excited. They all walk into the Great Hall and sit down at the Hufflepuf table, never stopping their discussion. Nobody says anything about Hermione sitting at the wrong table, and none of them notice the smile on the teachers' faces at seeing this. After lunch Harry has a free period and he decides to stay in the Great Hall to work on homework. Little does he know that Malfoy has seen him sitting by himself.

"Potter. I see you're not surrounded by your fan club."

"Malfoy. I don't have a fan club. I'm just trying to work on homework so if you could leave me alone I'd appreciate it" Harry said without looking up.

"You got me in trouble with my Head of House."

"I didn't get you in trouble Malfoy, you got yourself in trouble. Don't try to hex me again and your father won't get a letter. Sounds very simple."

"My father would be proud if I hexed the great Harry Potter. At least I have parents to send letters to."

"I have guardians Malfoy. Now let me be"

"So did those guardians teach you those shields?"

"Yes they did." Harry is getting annoyed and stands up to leave. "It's to protect me from idiots like you." Harry grabs his things getting ready to leave and go to his next class. He makes it all the way to the entrance hall before Malfoy blocks his path again.

"How dare you call me an idiot" Malfoy says with a furious look.

"Are you looking for a fight or something? I don't understand your problem with me this year."

"My problem is that once again the great Harry Potter gets everything. You couldn't be happy in Gryffindor. No, you had to have access to all houses" Malfoy says with a sneer.

_Ah, _Harry thought. _Malfoy is jealous._ "Well it wasn't my choice Malfoy"

"As if you'd ever not get your way. You know, maybe I do want to simply fight you."

"Well what are you waiting for? Scared Snape will find out?" Harry replies, getting angry and thinking that if they got this fight out of the way, Malfoy might leave him alone. At this point he figures the punishment would be worth it to shut Malfoy up.

"You'd fight me without your Mudblood friend to back you up? How brave."

"Don't call her that."

"I'll call her what I want. She's a mudblood and the Weasels are blood traitors."

Harry hates that word, and before he even realized he'd done it he has drawn his wand. Malfoy does the same and with a smirk fires the first hex. Harry easily blocks it and hexes Malfoy back. Before either of them can do anything else, Dumbledore appears next to them. "Gentlemen, what is the meaning of this? I believe you were both warned after yesterday. I will be sending a letter to your parents Mr. Malfoy (Harry saw Malfoy pale slightly), and Mr. Potter, I will be informing Professor Black. Since I do not want you serving detention together, Mr. Malfoy will serve his detention with Mr. Filch and Mr. Potter will serve his with Professor Snape. Now I suggest you both head to class." With that Dumbledore leaves. Since Harry and Draco both have Care of Magical Creatures they quietly walk outside, both of them smart enough to not start another fight.

"Professor Black is your guardian?" Malfoy asks softly.

"Yes he is. He's my godfather." Harry replies.

"I'm glad at least my father isn't here when he gets that letter."

"You worried Malfoy?"

"No, but it'll be good that he will have time to calm down before seeing me. He doesn't care what I do and he'd laugh about me hexing you as long as he doesn't get an official letter from Dumbledore. He'd be more angry I got caught."

"That's messed up Malfoy."

"I know."

With that they part ways and each of them join their friends. Harry is slightly confused by their conversation but decides to forget about it. He is more worried about Sirius' reaction. Why did he have to lose his temper?

The rest of the day is fairly uneventful. Harry sees Sirius' disapproving look at dinner but choses to ignore it. During dinner he receives a note to report for detention immediately after dinner. He explains to his friends what had happened, and Hermione lets her disapproval be known.

After dinner Harry walks down to the dungeons. When he gets to the classroom, Severus is already waiting for him.

"I can't believe you only remembered the warning for a few hours before getting in trouble. Sirius wants you to come to his quarters after detention and he said to be prepared to spend the night since you won't make it back to your room before curfew. For detention you will be coming here every evening immediately following dinner. On Saturday you will report at 10 AM. Tonight you will be scrubbing those cauldrons by the sink. You may leave when you are done."

Harry looks at the sink and his eyes widen at the stack of cauldrons. He has a feeling it will take several hours to finish them all.

Three hours later Harry is finally done and he leaves the dungeons. He passes Malfoy in the hall, who looks as tired as he feels, and knows that Malfoy's detention had been just as bad. After getting his books from his room he slowly makes his way to the teacher's wing. When he walks into the common room he sees that every teacher including Severus, Sirius and Remus are there. He walks over to the table Sirius, Remus and Professor Flitwick are sitting at.

"Mr. Potter, I'm not going to scold you as your Head of House since I know Sirius will take care of that. However, I do not want to see this happening again."

"Yes Sir"

"Go into our quarters Harry and start on your homework. I'll be there soon." Sirius says.

Harry walks into their quarters and sits down at the kitchen table to do his homework. He had felt all the teachers looking at him when he walked out of the common room, and he knows they all know he is in trouble.

A few minutes later Sirius walks in. "Come into the living room to talk Harry."

They both sit down on the couch.

"I'm disappointed you broke the rules again, especially so quickly after I talked to you and explained the consequences. It seems that you obey the rules perfectly except when it has something to do with Mr. Malfoy and that needs to stop. I know Severus will be hard on you in detention, but I told you what your punishment from me would be if you put yourself in danger. I know Malfoy provoked you but you should have walked away. You don't know what spells he knows, and for all you knew he could have seriously injured you. Do you have anything to say?"

"I tried to walk away but then I lost my temper and decided maybe we should just get the fight out of the way."

"Fighting is never the answer Harry. I know you were the first to draw your wand this time. We did not train you to have you use your training in school yard fights."

"I'm really sorry Sirius."

"Well, that's not good enough this time and apparently lines weren't enough of a deterrent." With that Sirius grabs Harry by the arm and tugs him over his knee. When Harry realizes what is happening he tries to squirm away but Sirius holds him tight with his left arm while landing a hard smack on Harry's backside with his right. Harry had known this was going to be happening, but it still somewhat shocks him when Sirius starts spanking him in earnest. Harry tries to hold back the tears, _I'm not going to cry over a few smacks like a little kid,_ but around the tenth smack the tears start leaking out. Around smack fifteen he starts crying louder and by smack twenty he is sobbing. At first he doesn't notice the spanking has stopped, but after a few minutes he notices Sirius is rubbing calming circles on his back. When he finally gets up, he immediately falls back into Sirius' arms for a hug, mumbling apologies.

"It's alright Harry, you're forgiven. You've been punished and all is forgiven."

Harry simply sits on Sirius' lap, not wanting to get away from the comfort. Despite the fact that his backside is sore, he feels loved and cared for. After a while he gets up and goes back to the kitchen to finish his DADA homework and lines for the next day.

Sirius goes back to the common room where he had been grading papers. Severus has joined them at their table, and he notices the grim look on Sirius face. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I just hate punishing him. I know I was hard on him but we can't have a repeat of this. The next person he gets into a fight with might know some truly dangerous spells. I really don't want him to end up in the hospital wing."

"You did the right thing Sirius. I can guarantee Mr. Malfoy is having a much harsher experience with his father. Lucius requested for Draco to be sent home, and if I know Lucius, Draco will have a hard time sitting down for a few days. Getting a letter from school is considered an embarrassment for the family in his eyes and he takes that seriously. Lucius wouldn't have punished Draco at all if he hadn't gotten a letter."

They all work for a little longer before calling it a night. When Sirius walks into Harry's room the boy is asleep on his stomach, still fully clothed. Sirius smiles and changes Harry into his pajamas before pulling the covers over him. He kisses the top of Harry's head and whispers a soft goodnight.

As he walks out of the room he hears a soft "Love you Sirius" from Harry.

"Love you too Pup" Sirius whispers back, barely able to contain the happiness he feels hearing those three words from Harry.

The following morning Harry wakes up disoriented. When he realizes where he is, the whole evening comes back to him and he turns slightly red. _Oh gosh I sobbed like a little baby, what is he going to think? I bet Remus and Severus heard all about it. _He then remembers waking up when Sirius tucked him in and the love you Sirius said back. He smiles, knowing that Sirius truly meant it. Harry quickly gets dressed in his uniform that Dobby dropped off sometime during the night and walks into the kitchen.

"Good morning Sirius, Remus" Harry says with his head down, not wanting to look them in the eyes.

"Good morning Harry. Are you eating breakfast here or in the Great Hall?"

"I'll eat breakfast here since my first class is closer to here than to the Great Hall."

"Alright. To order breakfast, simply say what you want and then tap the table with your wand. It will send the order to the house elves and they will send up the food."

Harry looks skeptical but does what Sirius said. Thirty seconds later he has a plate full of food in front of him. "Wicked! I really love magic at times."

Sirius laughs. "I'm glad you do pup. Now eat your breakfast or you'll be late for class. I've heard you have a very strict and mean teacher first thing."

"But I have Remus first."

"My point exactly" Sirius says, ducking his head to avoid the playful slap Remus was aiming for the back of his head.

Harry laughs at their playful banter and starts eating his breakfast in earnest. He now knows that neither Sirius nor Remus is going to mention the previous day and that he truly is forgiven.

When Harry gets to class, he sits down in his normal seat. Malfoy walks in right after him and he notices him sitting down very gently and wince slightly. Harry looks thoughtful before realizing that Malfoy must have been punished by his father the night before. It is only then that he realizes his backside doesn't hurt at all anymore. He can't imagine what kind of punishment Malfoy must have received for it to still hurt him enough that he can barely sit down the next day. Even when his uncle used to 'punish' him he could usually still sit down the next day. He feels bad for Malfoy since he doesn't think anyone should be beaten like that, but he also knows that Lucius Malfoy isn't someone to mess with and decides it's none of his business.

Before he can think any more on it he pulls out some parchment and starts taking notes. Before too long, he is completely focused on the lecture instead of Malfoy's predicament.


	19. Chapter 19

The remainder of the week goes by fast for Harry. He is enjoying his classes, and finds that now that he actually pays attention during them the material is much easier. He is not having any difficulty with any of the practical work, and he picks up the theory fast. He still has detention every evening, and while he hates detention, he has resigned himself to it and doesn't complain. At mealtimes he sits with either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw, and he is quickly making new friends. He realizes that he never really tried to make friends outside of Ron and Hermione, even within Gryffindor, and he sets out to change that.

Soon it is lunchtime on Saturday, and Harry is dismissed from detention until Monday evening. He walks to the Great Hall and sits down at the Gryffindor table with Hermione.

"Hi Hermione!"

"Hi Harry. Are you done with detention?"

"Yes, I don't have to go back until Monday night. What have you guys been up to this morning?"

"I've been doing homework. Neville and Ron played chess. What are your plans for the afternoon?"

"I'm not sure yet. I want to stop by Sirius' rooms at some point, I haven't seen him since the other night except for during class. It's nice out, want to go out by the lake?"

"Sure, that'd be nice."

"Guys do you want to join us?" Harry asks Ron, Neville, Dean and Seamus.

"I can't. I have detention with Filch for being out after curfew last night." Ron says. Neville, Dean and Seamus all nod that they'd like to come.

"Why were you out of after curfew? I didn't even notice you leaving" Neville asks Ron.

Ron turns slightly red. "I'd rather not say. Snape caught me and I have detention from lunch until dinner."

"Alright, well maybe next time you can come. I'm sure it's not the last nice day we'll have. I'm going to go ask Helena and Luna to join us."

"Why would you invite Loony Lovegood? She's crazy" Ron says

"Don't call her that. She is very nice and I like her. Just because she's a little bit eccentric doesn't mean she's crazy or that you can call her Loony." Harry says with a glare.

"Ok ok, no need to jump all over me." Ron says raising his hands in surrender.

Harry walks over to the Ravenclaw table to see if Luna and Helena want to join them. Helena declines, but Luna says she'd love to. They agree to meet in the entrance hall in half an hour.

Harry walks back to the Gryffindor table, and tells them he will see them in half an hour. Next he makes his way to his room to change since his clothes are dirty from detention and he wants to put on something clean and comfortable. Severus had him scrub the classroom floor in detention that morning, and he had been on his knees the whole time.

Thirty minutes later the group walks out of the castle and into the bright afternoon sun. They walk down to the lake and sit down along the shore, laughing and playing the whole way there. None of them notice the adults watching them from a window on the second floor. Sirius and Remus are watching the group enjoying their afternoon.

"Remus, are you noticing that Harry's group of friends seems to have grown? It's not just Ron and Hermione anymore. In fact, I don't see Ron at all."

"Yes I noticed that. Ron has detention with Filch all afternoon for being out after curfew last night. Severus caught him on the third floor. I'm glad Harry has more friends, and I love seeing him so carefree in moments like this." 

"Ron was out after curfew? By himself? Seeing that all the Gryffindor boys are out there he wasn't with any of them."

"No, he was with Lavender Brown. Severus said they were just walking in what appeared to be the direction of Gryffindor tower but he doesn't know where they came from or why they'd be on the third floor. He decided he'd rather not know since they both looked embarrassed at getting caught and some questions are better not asked."

"Probably a good idea. Is it selfish that I miss seeing Harry every day and I wish he'd come see us more often? I want to make up for all those years I've missed, and this summer wasn't nearly long enough."

"No it's not selfish, I feel the same way. I know I got to spend some time with him last year when you didn't, but this summer I really started feeling a connection with him. I'm happy he's being a normal teenager and hanging out with his friends, but I'd love to see him more. However, keep in mind that we told him we'd start his extra lessons next week so we'll see him regularly, and I'm sure he'll stop by sometime this weekend."

"I know, but I miss him. Let's head back to our rooms and get some work done so that if Harry stops by we can have some fun. We also need to make a schedule for his extra lessons."

Sirius and Remus head back to their rooms and get to work.

Later that evening after dinner Harry makes his way to the teacher's wing. He enjoyed the afternoon by the lake with his friends, and he is now looking forward to catching up with his guardians. He sees them sitting on one of the couches by the fire, with their backs towards the door. Severus is sitting in one of the arm chairs but doesn't let on that he has seen Harry. Harry quietly walks around the couch and lets himself drop down in Sirius' lap.

"Miss me?"

"Harry! You scared me, I didn't hear you come in!" Sirius exclaims startled.

Severus is smirking, and Remus is laughing as well. Sirius decides to take revenge and starts tickling Harry.

"Ahhh Sirius stop!" Harry laughs, trying to squirm away from Sirius. Sirius continues tickling Harry for a few minutes until Harry is literally on the ground laughing. The other teachers in the common room are smiling at their antics, happy to see them having so much fun. Finally Sirius stops and Harry sits on the ground trying to catch his breath.

"Not fair!" Harry says with a mock pout, but anyone who is looking at him can see the amusement in his eyes. He sits on the floor for a few more minutes before getting up and sitting in the armchair opposite Severus. "What are you all up to?"

"Enjoying the quiet away from all the dunderheaded students like yourself" Severus says with a smirk. They can all tell that he's teasing and not actually serious.

"Funny. I thought I'd come spend some time with you guys but guess i'll leave" Harry says in mock-hurt, pretending to get up to leave. Sirius however grabs him by the arm and Harry falls back into Sirius' lap.

"You're not going anywhere pup. We haven't seen you in days!"

"You saw me in class yesterday Sirius."

"Class doesn't count."

"I'll keep that in mind next time I decide to skip class" Harry says with a mischievous grin.

"You would never skip my class, I make it way too much fun for that." Sirius says, sounding very sure of himself.

"Sirius, you teach History of Magic. No offense but it's not the most interesting of classes. Now DADA, that is a class I'd never skip" Harry says teasingly.

"I'm hurt. Well if I'm so boring then I won't give you the extra lessons you want."

"I didn't say you were boring Sirius, I said History of Magic is boring. It's not your fault. Besides, I loved dueling lessons with you, I'd never skip those! So when do we start those again?"

"We're starting your extra lessons next week after your evenings are no longer occupied with detention. We were thinking two evenings a week, and then on Sunday afternoons for a few hours. We were going to see how you'd feel about having Sunday as family days. We can have dinner in our quarters after your lessons, and then we can either play games or you can finish homework if you have any left to do. Nobody would be surprised if you spend a few hours a couple times a week with us, since everyone knows we reconnected over the summer. And as far as anyone knows, I'm your legal guardian."

"That's fine. Now that I don't have Quidditch I have all my evenings free and I'd like to spend Sundays here."

"Your evenings are free when you don't have detention you mean. On that note, if you ever get detention on a day we were supposed to have lessons, lessons will be cancelled and you will go to detention instead." Severus adds with a pointed look at Harry.

Harry looks down at his knees, clearly remembering how much trouble he had gotten into earlier that week. Remus puts a hand under his chin and turns Harry's face to look at him.

"Harry, there is no reason to be embarrassed about what happened. You were forgiven for that already and that wasn't what Severus was referring to. You are a teenager and we have no doubt you'll get detention at times which is normal. He was just letting you know in advance that lessons would be cancelled when that happens. Alright?"

"Alright. I still feel bad about earlier this week though."

Remus sighs. "Harry, I can tell that you do. Keep in mind that we've forgiven and forgotten. You were punished and that was the end of it. Yes, you still have a few days of detention left, but that was the school punishment. As far as we go, there is no reason for you to feel bad anymore. And we have all noticed how good you've been towards Draco since then."

"I'm not used to being forgiven after punishment. It'll take time to get used to, but I'll try. I could tell Draco had been punished by his father, and he hasn't tried to antagonize me since. I don't want to constantly fight with him, so as long as he doesn't start anything I'm not going to either. To be honest, I felt bad for him. Nobody deserves to be treated like that by their parents, and as much as I don't like him, I wouldn't wish that on him."

"That says a lot about you Harry. You have an amazing ability to love and show compassion. I know you are only fourteen, but you have already been through so much more than any other fourteen year old. The fact that you still act like a teenager most of the time says a lot about you. Most people that have been through everything you've been through would have given up a long time ago and would have become very skeptical of the world, yet you see the good in everything." Severus says with a look that says he is proud of Harry.

"Yet I still manage to act like a kid half the time and lose my temper and throw tantrums…"

Severus laughs (which gets several of the teachers to look at them in amazement, as that is not something they hear often). "And that is perfectly understandable Harry. You were never allowed to be a child, your relatives forced you to grow up early, so you will still have times where you are emotionally younger and your reactions are that of a younger child or pre-teen. While you might get in trouble for losing your temper or throwing tantrums, I also think you've earned the right to occasionally do so simply because you never could growing up. And no matter how many times you do, we'll still be here."

"It's hard to believe that you will be. So besides duelling, what will my lessons be?" Harry asks in an attempt to change the subject.

Sirius, recognizing what Harry is trying to do replies. "I was thinking we'd do duelling one evening, Arithmancy one evening, and on Sundays we focus on wizarding culture and etiquette. That include just about anything you want to learn or get to know about living in the wizarding world. There are so many things you were never taught that you should have been. Plus I'm sure there's going to be times where you have questions about things and we can then discuss those in detail. At times we can also get others to help with these lessons, like for instance Lord Peterson can probably explain a lot more about the legal system than any of us could."

"That sounds good. In Ancient Runes we are learning the basics of using Runes for warding, but I got this book at Diagon Alley that goes more in depth. Once we've learned the basics, can one of you help me learn more about it? It looks really interesting to me."

"Absolutely pup. While the duelling and defence lessons are for your self protection, the rest of the lessons are for things you want to learn. If you want to learn about Ancient Runes, we will study Ancient Runes. Now how about we all go into our quarters and play some games?"

"Sure! But what about Severus? Won't it be weird if he's seen going into our quarters? We're technically not supposed to get along." Harry says. He knows they are far enough away from the other teachers so they couldn't be overheard, but he doesn't want them to get suspicious either.

"I will be going back down to my quarters Harry and then floo up to yours. We didn't know that was possible, but the headmaster informed us yesterday that he has made it possible for the Heads of House to floo anywhere in the castle for security reasons. This way we can get everywhere in the castle fast in case we are needed. While I have a feeling he didn't for it to be used this way, it does come in very useful." Severus replies with a satisfied smirk.

Harry, Remus and Sirius bid everyone a good night and go into their quarters while Severus leaves for his quarters in the dungeons. A few minutes later Severus sets a ward on his quarters to alert him if anyone is looking for him and floos back up. He walks in on Sirius and Harry wrestling on the floor in the living room. He looks at Remus with a questioning lift of his eyebrow.

"I have no idea. One minute they are on the couch talking, the next they are on the floor wrestling. I think it started with tickling and progressed into wrestling. I have a feeling they both have too much energy so I'm not going to stop them."

"I was only gone for about five minutes.." Severus says perplexed. He shakes his head and sits down on the couch. Remus hands him a cup of tea, and with a nod of thanks Severus leans back. Remus sits down on the couch with a cup of tea as well and smiles at Sirius and Harry's antics. He loves how carefree they are.

It takes a good fifteen minutes before Harry and Sirius stop rolling around on the ground, both laying back in exhaustion. "Harry, come sit up here and have a cup of tea. I don't want you to get dehydrated from all this activity" Remus says with a smile. "Sirius, you too"

Harry and Sirius get up and sit down with some tea. For a while everyone is quiet, lost in their own thoughts.

"So Harry, how are your classes so far?"

"They're alright. I'm finding myself looking at my classes and homework differently now that I don't hate it. Paying attention in class actually makes class go much faster, and doing the reading assignments before class allows me to understand class better."

Severus smirks. "Amazing how that work isn't it? Did you always think we assigned reading just to keep you busy?"

"Honestly, I never really thought about it. I wasn't allowed to do much homework at the Dursleys so I skipped everything that wasn't graded, and once I got here I was having so much fun with everything magical that I would rather do fun things than read. Once I got into the habit of not doing the reading I never got out of the habit. I also didn't fully understand everything in all my classes and didn't understand all of the more advanced reading. I guess I got behind from the start and never caught back up. But after this summer I'm caught up, and now I find that I'm actually enjoying the reading because I actually understand it. And I know that if I don't understand, I can always ask one of you. I never had someone to go to before."

"I'm glad you feel that way pup. And yes, you are always welcome to come here, even if you don't need help with anything. So who's up for a game of gobstones?"

Soon they are all having a good time, and they play for several hours. When it is time for curfew, Sirius sends a patronus to Professor Flitwick to let him know Harry will be staying the night in his quarters. Harry stops playing after a while and simply curls up in his chair and watches. When Remus looks over at him a little while later, he elbows Sirius and gets Severus's attention and nods towards Harry. They all have smiles on their faces, as Harry has fallen asleep.

"He looks so young and innocent like that" Sirius whispers. Severus stands up and slowly picks Harry up and starts carrying him towards his bedroom. Sirius and Remus follow him. Severus uses a quick spell to change Harry into pajamas and tucks him into bed. He gently kisses the top of his head and walks back towards the doorway. The three men smile at the boy sleeping, and then quietly leave his room.

"It's late, I'm going to head back to my quarters. I never thought I'd say this, but I truly enjoying spending the evening with you all. The one thing that surprised me though is how none of the other teachers seemed surprised that I was sitting with the two of you when they all knew we didn't get along before."

"Oh, I can explain that" Sirius says with a smile. "After the staff meeting the other day Professor Flitwick said how happy he was that we weren't biting each others heads off and were able to be civil towards one another. I told him, and I think most teachers overheard, that we had talked and had decided to put the past behind us and focus on who we are now as opposed to who we were as teenagers."

"Well that explains, and it will work in our favor since nobody will be surprised to see us together occasionally. But seriously, I enjoyed this evening. It has been a long time since I've allowed myself to just relax and have fun. Even over the summer I was constantly worried someone would find me at Black Manor and I never fully relaxed."

"We'll do it again soon I'm sure. Goodnight Severus."

"Goodnight Sirius, Remus."


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

The next couple days are busy for Harry, with classes all day and detention in the evenings. After detention he goes to either the Gryffindor or Ravenclaw common room and works on homework. On Wednesday he finally finishes his last detention after two hours of scrubbing cauldrons.

"Professor?"

"Yes Mr. Potter?"

"I'm done with these cauldrons. Is there anything else you want me to do?"

"No Mr. Potter, you are done. I hope you learned something from this?"

"Yes sir. I'm avoiding Malfoy as much as possible. I really don't want another week of detention for getting in a fight with him. I don't know why, but he has a way of getting under my skin."

"I have noticed that. I believe Mr. Malfoy has the same intentions, hopefully that is enough to keep the two of you out of trouble. You are dismissed."

"Thank you professor." Harry starts to leave, and then turns back. "Severus?"

Severus, knowing that Harry wants to talk to him as guardian, not as teacher when Harry addresses him that way, quickly casts some anti-eavesdropping spells around the room. "Yes Harry?"

"Are you still angry with me for getting into so much trouble my first few days here?"

"Come here Harry" Severus says softly. He waits for Harry to come close to where he's standing and then gives him a big hug. "I was never truly angry with you, you disobedient brat."

Harry, knowing that Severus calling him a disobedient brat is more a term of endearment than anything else, smiles a bit. "You weren't?"

"No Harry I wasn't. I was frustrated that you two couldn't stop the fighting, and I was disappointed that you drew your wand firs, but I wasn't really angry. You were punished and you are forgiven."

Harry tightens his arms around Severus for a minute and then lets go. "Thank you. I better go do some homework, it's getting late."

"Alright Harry, goodnight. And remember, I'm here if you need me. If you don't feel comfortable coming to the dungeons by yourself, simply go to Sirius' rooms and I can come there."

"Thank you Severus. Goodnight." And with that Harry walks out the door in the direction of the Hufflepuf common room. He knows it's faster to go through Slytherin, but he has no intention of ever going into that common room by himself. Halfway up the stairs to the first floor, he walks into Malfoy.

"Malfoy"

"Potter." Malfoy says back but keeps walking.

"Malfoy, wait up a minute. Look, we both got into massive amounts of trouble because of our stupid fights. I don't think I'll ever like you and we'll never be friends, but can we agree to call a truce? I don't have time for all these detentions and my backside would also appreciate it."

Malfoy looks thoughtful for a minute before replying. "Yeah I don't think my backside can handle another letter home anytime soon. I'll agree to a truce."

"That means no teasing or mocking me or my friends and family, no fights whether they be magical or physical. Agreed?"

"Agreed Potter."

Harry nods his acceptance, turns around and continues his walk to Hufflepuf. When he walks into the common room he is almost to his door when he is stopped by Cedric Diggory.

"Harry, do you have a minute?"

"Sure Cedric, what's up?" Harry is curious what Cedric could possibly want since he's a seventh year and they've never really spoken except during Quidditch matches.

"Several of us are upset there is no Quidditch this year. Madame Hooch said we can still use the pitch to play for fun if we want. Do you want to join us? It's open to all students, not just Quidditch players. We were thinking of just practicing, not really playing games or anything."

"Sure I'd love to! But only if any pickup games that are played are with mixed teams from all houses. I think it'd be nice if we could all play with each other for once instead of against each other."

"That is what we were thinking. We were planning on going out tomorrow after dinner."

"I'll be there. Thanks for inviting me!"

"You're welcome Harry. You're the best seeker this school has seen in a very long time. It just wouldn't be the same without you there."

Harry smiles and walks into his room. He grabs the books he needs for homework and walks into the Gryffindor common room where he spots Hermione doing homework, while Ron is playing chess with Dean.

"Hey guys."

They all look up. "Hey Harry. How was detention?"

"Same as always. Scrubbed lots of cauldrons, and I'll be happy if I never have to do that again. I still have to start on my Charms homework for tomorrow, and I want to get a start on the potions homework for Friday. I can't believe he assigned 4 feet!"

"You haven't done Charms yet Harry? It's 3 feet! You better get started if you want to get it done before lights out." Hermione says.

"That's what I'm planning on doing. I already have the outline and my notes, I just need to write the actual essay." Harry says while putting his books down, pulling out 3 feet of parchment and starting on his essay. Two hours later he finishes his essay. When he looks up, he sees that Ron is still playing chess and Hermione is still studying. He can't imagine Ron having finished his essay early, but he's not going to say anything either.

"Hermione, what are you studying?"

"Oh Harry, I was looking at these runes for warding. Ever since we've been talking about it in class it just has me fascinated!"

"I know I think it'd be really useful! Sirius said he'd help me with that once we've learned the basics. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you joined those lessons. So before I came here I was talking to Cedric Diggory. He invited me to join them for interhouse Quidditch tomorrow evening. He said they are getting together people from all four houses to just play for fun since there is no Quidditch this year."

"That will be nice Harry. It's a good way to bond with all houses!" Hermione says.

"That's what I thought. Plus I really miss flying! I haven't flown for weeks. Well, I'm off to bed. NIght all."

The next morning Harry sits with Luna at the Ravenclaw table for breakfast. He is talking cheerfully with her and several other Ravenclaws, and doesn't notice the glares Ron is sending him."

"Hermione, why is Harry sitting over there half the time? I know he's in all four houses now, but we're his friends he should be sitting here!" Ron complains.

"Ron, maybe they are his friends too. He is in all houses and he can sit where he wants. If he enjoys sitting at the Ravenclaw table, than he can sit at the Ravenclaw table. He has spent several evenings in their common room doing homework so it's not surprising he's made friends."

"But we were his friends first! He can't just drop us because he found something better."

"Ron, he still spends time with us, he's not dropping us. You should be happy for him and not act so jealous."

"I'm not jealous."

Hermione just gives him a look that clearly says she doesn't believe him, and turns back to her breakfast. Ron continues glaring at the Ravenclaw table but doesn't say anything else.

In Charms that morning they are learning how to charm something to play music. Ron is visibly struggling with the charm, and can't get his box to play any sound at all. Hermione takes most of the class period, but finally she gets her box to play a few seconds of music. Harry succeeded at the charm after just a couple tries, but after seeing how much everyone is struggling, he reverses his charm and pretends to be struggling. He knows that mastering this charm doesn't reveal his power since it's a fourth year charm, but he doesn't want to show up his classmates either. He is uncomfortable with it, and decides that he'd rather do average in class. At the end of class he pretends to finally succeeds and gets his box to play music, just so he'll still get a passing grade.

That evening after dinner, Harry grabs his broom and heads out to the Quidditch pitch. When he gets there, there is a group of about twenty people gathered, and he notices all four houses are there. They all greet him cheerfully, and it doesn't take long for them to start flying. At first they are all just flying around, happy to be in the air. Soon they divide into groups, with chasers passing the quaffle around and seekers chasing a practice snitch. Harry is having a blast, and much to soon for his liking they have to call it quits. Everyone still has homework to do, but they all agree to meet again on Monday evening. Harry is already looking forward to it.

After putting his broom back in his room, Harry goes to the library to work on his essays for the next day. He still has to finish his potions and DADA essays, which he knows will take most of the evening. He struggles with his potions essay, not fully understanding the topic, and when Madame Pince comes to tell him it's almost curfew he has barely finished his essay. He knows it's not a great essay, but he doesn't have time to fix it. He heads back to his room and works on his DADA essay. Harry has always been good at DADA and he has no issues writing the essay. He finally goes to bed, exhausted from all his homework and playing Quidditch.

The next morning at breakfast Harry sits at the Hufflepuf table for the first time. He got to know several fourth and fifth year Hufflepuf students the night before on the Quidditch pitch, and decided he'd like to get to know them better. His move to the Hufflepuf table does not go unnoticed by the teachers up at the head table.

"It's appears Mr. Potter is taking advantage of his unique position with the school. The only house he hasn't been seen with yet is Slytherin." Filius says.

"I heard he played pick up Quidditch last night, and there were several Slytherins there as well. I believe all houses were represented. I don't think he has anything against Slytherin, but I understand his apprehension at sitting at a table where he's not wanted." Sirius replies.

"Yes, all four houses were there last night. I supervised to make sure there were no problems. They all enjoyed it, and I heard them making plans to do it more often. I think Mr. Potter having access to all houses is great for house unity." Madame Hooch says from down the table.

Everyone turns back to look at Harry and then looks around the hall to see student reactions. Soon they see all the students start to leave for class, and all the teachers get up as well.

In DADA Remus finally has them practice the various shield spells he's been teaching them. Harry is partnered with Hermione. Harry learned all three shield spells over the summer, and he has no problem with them. Hermione throws up her 'protego' easily, but has trouble with the other two. Harry is tempted to fumble with his shield spells like he did with his charm in Charms the day before, but decides against it. Remus knows he can do all of them, and it would look suspicious if he suddenly couldn't anymore. When Harry easily blocks all the spells Hermione throws at him, she looks at him in shock.

"Harry, you got all those shields on your first try!"

"I practiced them over the summer Hermione, this isn't my first time. Want me to hex you so you can practice your shields?"

"Sure, but make them light at first Harry. I haven't quite got my shields figured out yet."

Harry concentrates on making his spells as light as possible, not wanting to hurt Hermione. However, while he got most of his magic under control over the summer, he knows he still struggles at times. He sends a stinging hex at Hermione, and while she throws up a shield, it is not strong enough and she gets the full blast of the hex. Harry watches in horror as Hermione flies backwards a few feet and hits a nearby desk with a loud crack. He runs over to her, and reaches her right as Remus does as well.

"Hermione! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?!" Harry says frantically.

"Harry, calm down" Remus says while kneeling down next to Hermione. Hermione doesn't respond. "I think she hit her head when she fell. I'm going to take her to the infirmary. Class dismissed!" Remus conjures a stretcher and places Hermione on it. He then proceeds to walk to the infirmary with her, Ron and Harry following closely.

"Poppy! I need your help!" Remus yells when entering the infirmary. Poppy comes out of her office, takes one look at Hermione and directs Remus to put her one of the beds. Harry and Ron stand nearby, looking nervous. Once Remus has put Hermione on the bed, he walks over to Harry and Ron to get out of Poppy's way. They all stand there, waiting for her to say something. After about fifteen minutes, Poppy finally steps back.

"She will be alright. There are some bruises where she fell, and she broke one of her ribs. She should be waking up soon, and I'll give her some skelegrow then. What happened?"

"It's my fault. We were practicing shields and my stinging hex was stronger than I intended." Harry says.

"Harry, accidents happen. Hermione will be fine with Poppy taking care of her." Remus says while putting an arm around Harry's shoulder. "You and Ron need to get to History of Magic, the bell rang a few minutes ago. I'll write you a note for Professor Black. You can come back and check on Hermione after class."

"Please can I stay? It's my fault she's here!" Harry asks Remus, looking at him with pleading eyes.

"No Harry. You need to go to class. There is nothing you can do here." Remus says firmly while handing Harry the note.

Harry's shoulders drop but he knows he can't change Remus' mind so he takes the note and heads to class with Ron. When they enter the classroom he hands Sirius the note and sits down. Sirius reads the note, looks at the dejected looks on Ron and Harry's faces, and then continues his lecture. When he notices Harry not taking out his books or taking notes, he doesn't want to say anything because he understands, but he knows he can't appear to play favorites.

"Mr. Potter, please take out your book and take notes. You can see Ms. Granger after class but right now I need you to pay attention."

"Huh, what?" Harry says, startled at being addressed. He looks around, and realizes everyone is taking notes. "Oh, sorry professor." He takes out his books and some parchment and gets ready to take notes.


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Harry takes notes throughout class, but his thoughts are on Hermione. If anyone were to ask him what class is about, he would not be able to tell them. As soon as class is over, he shoves everything into his bag and leaves the classroom before anyone else has even packed up. Sirius looks after him in concern but doesn't try to stop him. Ron also leaves fairly quickly, and catches up to Harry in the hallway.

When they enter the infirmary they see that Hermione is awake. "Hermione! I'm so glad you are awake! I am so sorry, I never meant for you to get hurt!" Harry exclaims before he's even reached her bed.

"Don't worry about it Harry, accidents happen. I know you didn't mean to hurt me." Hermione says.

"What did Pomfrey say? Are you going to be alright?"

"Yes, she gave me some skelegrow to fix my rib and she said after that I will be released with orders to take it easy. She wants me to come back if I start getting headaches, dizziness or nausea but other than that I'll be fine."

Harry looks visibly relieved. "I'm so glad you'll be alright. I feel awful. I thought I was holding back on my power."

"Harry, don't worry about it, I'm not upset. But if that's you holding back power I feel bad for whoever you hex at full power." She says with a grin.

Harry looks a little sheepish. "Yeah, I hope for that person they have good shields. I need to talk to Remus and tell him I don't want to do practical lessons in class. I don't want anyone else to get hurt because I couldn't control my power."

"I'm sure he will work with you, no worries. So what did I miss in History of Magic?"

Ron and Harry just look at each other and both shrug. "I have no idea. I took notes but I can't guarantee they are any good."

"I will get you an outline from class Ms. Granger. How are you feeling?" Sirius says from behind them. None of them had noticed him walking in and jump slightly at hearing his voice.

"Thank you professor. I'm feeling alright. The skelegrow isn't pleasant but Madame Pompfrey said it would only take about an hour to heal the bone so it should be almost healed by now."

"I'm glad to hear that. Harry, could you come to our quarters after classes today?"

"Sure Sirius. Am I in trouble?"

"No Harry, you aren't." Sirius says with a small and a comforting pat on Harry's shoulder. "Now you two should get to lunch. We don't want you falling over from hunger in potions this afternoon."

"Yes professor. Bye Hermione, we'll see you when you get released!" Ron says.

"Bye Hermione. We'll see you in a little while." Harry says, trying to force a smile.

Ron and Harry walk down to lunch in silence and sit down with their housemates in the Great Hall. They are quickly drawn into a Quidditch discussion and before they know it it's time to head to potions. Hermione doesn't come to class, but then again, nobody had expected her to. They aren't brewing today, so Harry tries to focus on the lecture on the forgetfulness potion and take adequate notes. He feels that the least he can do is make sure Hermione has good notes to use.

After classes are over Harry walks back to Gryffindor tower with Ron, after which he drops off his books in his room and heads to the teacher's wing. The common room is empty, but when he walks into their quarters Remus, Sirius and Severus are all there waiting for him.

"Hi Pup, do you want some tea?"

"Yes please. What's going on? Usually when you're all sitting in the living room waiting for me I'm in trouble, but you said I wasn't."

"Sit down pup. You aren't in trouble. We just want to see how you are doing since we can tell you are still upset over what happened in class today."

Harry sits down on the couch in between Sirius and Remus and takes the cup of tea Sirius hands him. "I know it was an accident, but I still feel really bad. She got hurt because I couldn't control my power. Plus now the headmaster will probably wonder how I was able to send such a powerful hex."

"Cub, I saw you taking a deep breath before hexing her, and I could tell you were holding back. Her shield didn't hold up. You were not at fault in any way. Accidents happen in practical lessons, it's part of school. I don't know if the headmaster will wonder about that, but if he does we'll deal with it then. If he does find out you are more powerful, he still doesn't know the full extent of your power. As teachers we have to report all accidents to the headmaster, but we will just have to wait and see what he does with it." Remus says.

"I understand, it's just going to take me some time to get past this."

"Harry, the most important thing is that you don't let it affect what you do. You can't become afraid to hex someone even if it's just for practice." Severus says.

"Cub, would it make you feel better if I had you practice with me in class from now on? We have an odd number of students in class, so instead of having one group of three I can have you practice with me. You know my shields are good, and that way you can truly practice and you won't risk hurting a classmate."

"I'd like that Remus. I really don't want to risk hurting my friends."

"Then that's what we'll do. It will all work out cub, and if you're ever worried about something you can come to us. You know that right?"

"Yes Remus, but it's hard to remember at times. I so used to doing everything on my own."

Sirius draws Harry into a sideways hug, and Harry leans into him for a bit. They all just sit quietly for a few minutes before deciding it is time for dinner.

The rest of the week is uneventful. Hermione is at dinner on Thursday, and Harry spends Thursday evening in the Gryffindor common room working on homework and playing chess with Ron and Neville. On Friday Harry once again pretends to struggle with the Charm they are learning. After what happened in DADA, he doesn't want to out-perform Hermione. He knows she really values being top of the class. He also doesn't want to draw attention to himself. Friday evening Harry spends some time in the Ravenclaw common room with Luna, before heading to the Gryffindor common room to spend time with Hermione and Ron. Hermione is working on homework, but Ron, Harry, Dean, Seamus and Neville hang out in the fourth year boys dorm talking about anything and everything. Harry has Dobby bring lemonade and cookies, and it doesn't take long for Seamus to bring out a bottle of rum.

"I took this from my mum and hid it in my trunk. Want to spike the lemonade a little?"

They are all for it, even though Harry hesitates at first. He knows they'd get in massive trouble if caught, but doesn't think a little bit of rum would hurt. Besides, he can always limit how much he drinks. Soon they are all rowdier and laughing and on their second pitcher of lemonade. Dobby looks a little disapproving at the boys but doesn't say anything. When a prefect comes in to tell them to quiet down they calm down a little. That is until Harry playfully hits Ron with a pillow and a pillow fight breaks out. Soon there are feathers flying everywhere and they are all laughing and jumping around on their beds.

"What in the blazes is going on in here?!" Professor McGonnagal says. None of the boys had heard her come in and they all stop and turn to look at her. "I do not appreciate being woken up by one of my prefects because they can't get the fourth year boys dorm to quiet down."

The five boys all step off the beds and look down at their shoes. "Sorry Professor"

"Well sorry isn't good enough when it's midnight and I have to intervene. Now why does it smell like alcohol in here?"

None of the boys reply, so she steps towards the lemonade pitcher which is mostly empty. She picks it up and smells it. "Rum. You boys have been drinking. I want you all to clean up in here and then go to bed quietly. I will deal with this in the morning. Mr. Potter, please return to your room after you are done helping." She says before banishing the lemonade and leaving the room.

None of them even consider disobeying her, and with a few quick cleanup charms and some new pillows courtesy of Dobby, they all go to bed.

The next morning Harry wakes up with a pounding headache. Everything seems to hurt, and he wants to do nothing more than stay in bed. However, that is not to be when Remus knocks on his door and comes in.

"Get up Harry. You have a meeting with Professor McGonnagal in fifteen minutes. A prefect is already going up to your friends to wake them up." Remus moves over to the bed and removes the cover from Harry. "Up!"

"There's no need to yell. Why are you in here, why isn't a prefect waking me up?" Harry says with a groan.

"Because only teachers can access your room. I volunteered to wake you up after I heard what you boys were up to last night. Now get moving."

Harry slowly gets up, grabs random clothes to put on while stumbling around and gets dressed. He then heads to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth, hoping it will help. When he comes back into his bedroom, Remus is standing near the door with his arms folded in front of his chest.

"When you are done with your meeting, I want you to come to our quarters for a little chat. Understood?"

"Yes Remus." Harry grumbles, before moving past Remus to the door to go to the meeting. He really doesn't want to go, but knows it's not optional. When he walks past Remus, Remus gives him a sharp smack on his behind.

When Harry walks into Professor McGonnagal's office Ron, Dean, Seamus and Neville are already standing in front of her desk.

"Now that Mr. Potter has joined us, let's get this over with. This is not the first time I have caught students drinking in the dorms, and I doubt it will be the last. However, that does not mean it is acceptable behavior! I understand you wanted some fun, but drinking should not be a part of that. Now it looks like you are all sporting headaches this morning. As part of your punishment, you are not allowed to take a hangover potion. Also, I am taking twenty points from each of you. I will be writing a letter to each of your parents to let them know what happened. Last, you are grounded to your dorm for the remainder of the day. You are allowed to go to the Great Hall for meals, and that's it. Mr. Potter, your guardians have requested for you to be grounded to their quarters instead and I have agreed. I hope we do not have to have a repeat of this boys, because the next time I catch any of you with alcohol this punishment will seem like a walk in the park, understood?"

"Yes professor." They all said in unison.

"Good. Then you are dismissed."

With that the five boys walked out of the office and back into the Gryffindor common room.

"Gran is going to kill me when she gets that letter." Neville says dejectedly.

"Yeah so is my mom." Ron says. Dean and Seamus nod in agreement.

"At least your parents would have to come here and they might not. My guardians are already here." Harry says.

"Yeah that sucks mate, but I think my mom is going to pay me a visit at some point today. Fred and George got drunk once and she came to the school to deal with them." Ron says.

"Good luck mate. Well I'll see you guys at lunch." Harry says, before walking out of the common room to head to the teacher's wing. When he walks into the teacher's wing, he notices the disapproving looks on many of the teacher's faces. Apparently word has gotten around and they all know the Gryffindor boys got into trouble the night before. Harry walks into their quarters, and immediately walks through to the kitchen in hopes of finding breakfast. When he walks in, he sees Remus, Sirius and Severus sitting at the table eating breakfast and he stops in the doorway.

"Sit down Harry and have some breakfast. It will make you feel better." Severus says.

Harry calmly sits down and starts eating some toast. Nobody says anything, and too soon for Harry's liking they are done eating.

"Cub, what you did was stupid. Now we know you have already been punished by Professor McGonnagal, but we expected better from you. We know this is your first time drinking and you probably didn't realize the effects alcohol would have. Now you know and we hope you've learned something from this. However, since you are grounded for the day we don't want you to sit around and do nothing. After you are done with all your homework, you will write an essay on the dangers of alcohol, especially in a magical environment. I want you to include examples of accidents that have happened with drunk wizards and witches who decided to use their wand while drunk. Understood?"

"Yes Remus, I understand. I'm really sorry. I didn't think a little bit would hurt, but before we realized it we had drank a lot and we were all drunk. I really didn't plan to get drunk."

"Then let this be a lesson. We do not want to catch you drinking again until you are of age, and if we do, you will not only be grounded you will be grounded with a sore backside. We know you didn't mean for it to happen this time, so we will consider the matter closed. Now you should have Dobby bring you the books you need. You may eat lunch and dinner in the Great Hall with your friends. Since we are doing extra lessons tomorrow, you may spend the night here if you want."

Harry nods. "Thanks Remus, I'd like that." Harry gets up to walk to his room when he is stopped by Sirius, who draws him into a hug before letting him leave the room. Harry heads to his room and calls Dobby to bring his books. He then sits down at his desk to start on his homework. He is finding it hard to concentrate with his headache, and after an hour he goes in search of Sirius or Remus, not finding either of them. He finally finds Severus at one of the tables in the common room.

"Severus, where are Sirius and Remus?"

"They had to step out for a minute so they asked me to stay here in case you needed something. What do you need?"

"I know we aren't supposed to take a hangover potion, but I feel terrible and it's making it hard to focus on my homework. Can I please have something?"

Severus sighs. "I guess by now you've learned how it feels to be hung over. Since I want you to get your homework done, I will get you the potion but don't mention it to anyone else, alright?"

"Thanks Severus" Harry says with a smile. He waits for Severus to come back with the potion and takes it in one big gulp. He immediately starts to feel better. "So much better. Do you mind if I do my homework out here?"

"That's fine Harry. If anyone asks I can always say Sirius asked me to oversee your grounding."

Harry gets his books and continues working on his homework. When it is time for lunch he has finished all his homework for Monday. He asks Dobby to take his books back to his room and then walks down to the Great Hall. He spots Ron, Dean, Neville and Seamus at the Gryffindor table and sits down with them. As soon as he does, Hermione smacks him on the back of the head.

"That was really stupid Harry!"

"Ow! No need to smack me Hermione, I already got in plenty of trouble. I know it was stupid and trust me, it won't happen again anytime soon." Harry says while loading his plate with food. "How are you all doing?"

"Alright. Headache is finally gone, but staying in the dorm is really boring. A prefect checks up on us every hour to make sure we aren't doing anything fun." Dean says.

"Yeah, it's been boring mate. How about you? Was Sirius mad?" Ron asks.

"Yeah he was. I got lectured on how stupid what we did was. I have to finish all my homework, and then I have to write an essay on the dangers of alcohol in a magical environment. Sirius and Remus had to go somewhere so they've had Professor Snape watch me. I've done all my homework for Monday already."

"That sucks. At least we don't have to do anything if we don't want to." Seamus says.

Harry simply nods back, while silently thinking that it's nice to have his homework done since he has extra lessons the next day. "Did your mom come to the school Ron?"

"Yeah, she did. I got yelled at and lectured on the dangers of alcohol, and then I got my bum smacked a couple times. She said if it happens again she'll take away my broom for the whole summer." Ron says with a scowl.

"My gran came too. She just lectured me and I'm grounded tomorrow as well." Neville puts in.

"My mom just sent me a letter telling me how disappointed she was. I'm glad she didn't come here." Dean says.

"My mum sent me a letter, but I'm glad she doesn't know it was my alcohol. She'd definitely be visiting me then!" Seamus says.

Soon the conversation turns to other topics, mainly the upcoming Hogsmeade weekend. They all agree to go as a group, and they agree to Harry inviting Luna and Helena to join them. Harry walks over to the Ravenclaw table to ask them.

"Hi Luna, Hi Helena. Would you guys like to join us for the Hogsmeade trip next week?"

"I'd love to Harry." Luna says.

"I already have plans, but thank you." Helena replies. "By the way, I heard about the drinking incident. You're lucky you aren't in Ravenclaw. Professor Flitwick takes that very seriously and you'd be in a world of trouble."

"Does everyone know about this? And I got in a lot of trouble with Professor McGonnagal and my guardians. Not sure how much worse it could get."

"Yeah I think by now pretty much everyone knows. And the last group that got drunk in Ravenclaw was grounded for a week and had detention for a month."

"Oh wow, yeah I'm glad Professor Flitwick didn't catch us! But then again, he is my Head of House so he might still do something." Harry says worriedly.

"Doubtful. He usually doesn't punish students in his house if they've been punished by another professor."

"That's good to know. Well, I can see my guardians giving me looks so I need to head back to our quarters. Bye!"

Harry heads back to the teacher's quarters, gets his books for his Tuesday homework and sits back down in the common room to work on it. Soon he is joined by Sirius and Severus who are both grading papers. An hour later Remus joins them and puts a stack of books in front of Harry.

"Harry, these are the books you'll need for your essay. Since you can't go to the library I took the liberty of getting them for you."

Harry looks up at Remus, not having noticed him before. "Thank you Remus."

Halfway through his last assignment, potions, Harry starts getting frustrated. "Severus, I don't understand why it makes such a big difference how large you slice the roots for the forgetfulness potion. I can't find it in the book."

"Harry, it matters because if the slices are too large, the roots will take too long to blend with the other ingredients, while it will blend and absorb too fast if the roots are too small. In this particular potion, the wrong size roots would make the potion toxic because of the shrivelfig that is added in the next step."

"So is that also why the slices have to be uniform in size?"

"Yes Harry, that's exactly why. Each ingredient in each potion works together. However, dicing instead of slicing, larger instead of smaller pieces, or adding an ingredient too fast or too slow can change how they all work together. When this happens, the potion either becomes ineffective or can become toxic."

"That makes sense. Thank you."

"You're welcome Harry." Severus says with a slight smile. He is happy Harry feels comfortable enough to ask questions.

Harry finishes his potions essays and starts on his alcohol essay. While reading through the books and news articles, he realizes just how dangerous drinking can be. He looks up and sees Sirius, Remus and Severus staring at him.

"I never knew how dangerous it could be. A simple wave of my wand while drunk and I could seriously injure or kill someone. And if I can do wandless magic, it's even more dangerous!"

The three adults simply nod, knowing this and knowing that this is why they assigned the essay. Harry turns back to his books and starts writing the essay. He ends up writing five feet, and when he hands it to Remus he is glad to be done.

"Remus, when you are done with that, can I make copies and give it to Ron, Dean, Neville and Seamus? I think they'd benefit from reading this."

"Off course cub. I think that is a great idea. I'm glad you learned something from it. Now since it's almost time for dinner, why don't you head on down to the Great Hall." Remus says with a smile.

After Harry leaves, he turns to Sirius and Severus. "I think he really learned something from this."

"Yes he did. I think he learns more from writing an essay like that then he would from a spanking or sitting in his room all afternoon." Severus replies.

Sirius nods in agreement. "I think sometimes he needs to feel the consequences on his backside, but in situations like this where he truly didn't understand the dangers, he learns more from doing the research."

That evening after dinner they are all sitting in the living room.

"What are we going to do in my lessons tomorrow?" Harry asks.

"I was going to teach you protocols that a Confirmed Lord should follow. Especially when talking to other Lords or Heirs, there are protocols that must be followed. It would be to your benefit to learn about these protocols. I was taught them from a young age because I was Heir to the House Black, and you should have been as well, but since you haven't I feel that we should make that a top priority. There are quite a few Heirs to various houses at Hogwarts, and if you ever need to address them it's best to do so properly." Sirius replies.

"Yet another thing I should already know. Sirius, why can't you get the Lordship back? I feel that you would be much better at it."

"It's the law. When the law was written, there was no provision made to gain the Lordship back once it was lost. Since getting convicted of a crime that lands you in Azkaban makes you lose your Lordship, I lost mine. Even though I was innocent, there is no provision in the law that allows it to be turned back because it's so rare for someone to be sent to Azkaban when innocent since usually things like veritasserum are used. This law was created because you can't perform the functions and responsibilities associated with being a Lord from Azkaban, and this way all the Noble Houses had an active Lord. To be honest Harry, I don't mind that I lost the Lordship. I never truly wanted to be Lord Black. As a Lord you are responsible for everyone in the family, and I didn't want that responsibility. Yes, I like the prestige and I like being able to vote on the Wizengamot, but that's it. I'd rather live a more carefree life and be able to do what I want than be limited because I'm Lord Black. As your Proxy I am able to vote on the Wizengamot. I know that I won't be your proxy forever, but for now I am going to make the most of it. I think you will be a great Lord for all your Houses Harry, even if you don't feel like you will be now. Once we have trained you on everything you need to know, it will become second nature to you. You have the compassion necessary to deal with family issues, while being level headed enough to not let people walk all over you. You're not afraid to stand up for what you believe in. You will be fine, and I will be here to help you when you need it."

"I understand why that law exists, but there really should be some provision just in case a mistake is made. That might be something we can work on once we get some more experience and allies in the Wizengamot. And Sirius, if you want to keep the proxy, I won't take it away from you when I'm old enough to take the seat. I have 3 other seats I can take. I still feel that seat should be yours, and it will remain yours as long as you want it."

"Thank you Harry. During our lessons tomorrow we will also discuss how the Wizengamot works. We will make a chart of all the seats, and who occupies that seat at this time. We can then decide who would be good allies for us to have when we want to bring forth a change to a law or a new law. We should start working on those relationships now. Also, we will make a list of all the Heirs, Confirmed Lords and Un-Confirmed Lords at Hogwarts. That will help you."

"What is the difference between Confirmed and Un-Confirmed?"

"I will discuss it in more detail tomorrow, but the main difference is a Confirmed Lord has claimed their Lordship, while an Un-Confirmed Lord has a right to a Lordship but hasn't claimed their Lordship Ring yet. You were an Un-Confirmed Lord until you claimed your rings this summer."

"That makes sense. I look forward to these lessons. I want to know all these things. I was thinking about something else the other day. I've been making friends in the other houses, but I keep having to hang out with one house or the other. I was wondering if there was a way to get an all-house common area where we could all hang out together."

"You'd have to talk to the headmaster about that Harry. If he approves such a place, he will then recommend an area." Severus says.

Harry looks at Severus. "I think I will do that. I don't know how many people will actually use it, but it'd be nice for at least my friends and I. I'd like them all to get to know each other. Do I need to make an appointment with the headmaster?"

"You don't, but it is a good idea to let him know you will be coming. Why don't you send him a note and let him know there is something you would like to discuss with him. He will likely send you back a note with a day and time that is convenient for him." Severus says. "Make sure to use Hedwig, otherwise his note will go to your Gringotts post box instead of you in person."

"That's right, I forgot that all my mail goes through there. I will do that right now." Harry says, getting up to get some parchment and a quill. He writes a quick note and sends it off with Hedwig. Harry suggests they play a game of exploding snap, and they all join in. After the first round, Hedwig comes back with a reply.

** Mr. Potter,

I would be happy to sit down and discuss your new ideas with you. Please meet me in my office after dinner tomorrow night. I do still enjoy chocolate frogs this time of year.

Sincerely, Professor Dumbledore.**

"He said to meet him in his office after dinner tomorrow. What does he mean he enjoys chocolate frogs?"

Sirius laughs. "That means that's his password to get into his office."

"Oh, ok. Well I think I'm going to head to bed. All this studying today has made me exhausted."


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

The following afternoon finds a very excited Harry waiting in the living room for Sirius. It is just after lunch, and they are supposed to start lessons soon. He knows he is early, but he is excited to learn more about what being a Lord entails. When Sirius finally walks in and takes a seat in one of the chairs, Harry is about ready to explode.

"Calm down Harry, you'll burst a blood vessel this way. I understand you're excited, but today's lesson might actually be somewhat boring. Let's start with a basic overview of the Wizengamot and how it works. The Wizengamot is made up of three sections or tiers. The first section, which is the one the House of Black and the House of Potter are part of is made up of the Lords from the Seven Ancient and Noble Houses. These Houses are Black, Potter, Nott, Abbott, Longbottom, Shacklebolt and Selwyn. Each house has one vote. However, if the seven ancient and noble houses all agree on a change of law, this change will not require the vote of the entire Wizengamot. So if for instance all these seven houses believe the werewolf laws should be changed, they can propose that to the Wizengamot, and it will be effective immediately without requiring a full vote. It is very rare for all these houses to agree on something. These seats are passed down from Lord to Lord, and if there is no Lord at the time, the seat will simply be empty. However, that also means that during those times no changes can be voted into effect without a full vote because it would be impossible to get all seven Houses to agree. This was put in place so one Lord can't simply kill another Lord to get a law passed. As awful as that sounds, I think this is a good provision. Does this make sense so far?"

"Yes it does."

"Alright. The next section is made up of the twenty-one Noble Houses. These Houses are Avery, Bulstrode, Burke, Ravenclaw, Crouch, Fawley, Flint, Gaunt, Greengrass, Lestrange, Macmillan, Malfoy, Hufflepuf, Parkinson, Prewett, Peverell, Slytherin, Bones, Gryffindor, Prince and Weasley. These seats are also passed down from Lord to Lord. They each have one vote in the Wizengamot. The House can't lose their seat, so if there is no Lord it simply remains empty. For instance, the Lestrange seat is now empty because the last Lord Lestrange is in Azkaban and lost their Lordship, and there is no heir at this time. These twenty eight Houses make up the Sacred Twenty-Eight. They all have Lords or Heirs unless the line is extinct, and they are the ones for which you follow certain protocols, which we will go over later. The remainder of the Wizengamot, 22 seats, is made up of members voted in by the Wizengamot. When a seat becomes available, a new member is voted in. The new member need a two-thirds majority in the Wizengamot votes to get the seat. A potential member can be nominated by anyone from the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Usually once a seat becomes available, there is a week to put in nominations, after which there is a vote. Seats become available through three ways. One is the member dies. These seats are not passed on, so if a member dies, the seat is open for voting. Second is because a member committed a crime. If a member in this section gets convicted of a crime they lose their seat. While the Sacred Twenty-Eight lose their Lordship, and with that their Wizengamot seat, only if sentenced to Azkaban, a member of this third section will lose their seat even when not convicted to Azkaban. The third way for them to lose their seat is if they get voted out. In order for a member of this section to get voted out, they need 100% of the Sacred Twenty-Eight to vote for that. I'm not sure this has ever happened. I will get you a map of the Wizengamot, and it will have the seats on it. The Ancient and Noble Houses sit together, the Noble Houses sit together and the other members sit together. All seats are assigned and you sit in the same seat each time. Besides these sections, there is a court scribe who keeps records, the Minister of Magic is at meetings and the head of the DMLE attends court cases. The current Head of the DMLE is Madame Bones, and since she is the Lord for the Noble House of Bones, she is already there at every meeting. The Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamot is currently the headmaster. He presides over the meetings and ensure they run smoothly and the agenda is followed. He also ensures protocols are followed. This position is voted on by the Wizengamot when it becomes available. It is also possible to get a vote of no confidence. For both situations, a two-thirds majority is needed. Now, I assume you've listed the Sacred Twenty Eight as I went over them?"

"Yes I did. I recognize a lot of these names."

"Yes, I imagine you would. Let's list the heirs to these Houses that are currently attending Hogwarts. Can you name some?"

"Ancient and Noble House of Abbott I think would be Hannah from Hufflepuf. Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom would be Neville. For Bulstrode it's Millicent from Slytherin, for Flint it's probably Marcus from Slytherin, Greengrass is probably Daphne from Slytherin, Macmillan would be Ernie from Hufflepuf, Malfoy would be Draco, Parkinson would be Pansy from Slytherin, Bones would be Susan from Hufflepuf. I'm assuming the Weasley heir is Bill."

"That is correct. Those are all heirs. As far as I know you are the only Confirmed Lord at Hogwarts and there is only one Un-Confirmed Lord. Do you have an idea who that might be?"

"I have no idea. I don't recognize the other names."

"I suppose you wouldn't. The Un-Confirmed Lord is for the Noble House of Prince. It is actually Severus through his mother's family. He is the only remaining member of that family, but he hasn't claimed the Lordship yet. He was unaware that he was the Lord of this family until he received a letter from Gringotts at the end of the summer that explained that his cousin passed away and Severus is now the only one remaining. He knew that his mother's maiden name was Prince, but he never thought much about it since his mother's family wanted nothing to do with her once she married a muggle. Apparently they never officially disowned her though, which is why Severus can now claim the Lordship. He has not yet decided when he will do so, but it will likely be over the next break when he has the opportunity to go to Gringotts to claim the ring and the vault."

"That's good for him though. So I'm assuming this is one of the reasons you were all so strict about Malfoy and I not fighting?"

"Yes, it is one of the reasons. Off course we don't want you to fight with anyone, but physical or magical fights between Heirs and/or Lords are simply not done. If you had injured him, his father could have ruined your reputation within the Wizengamot and amongst the Sacred Twenty Eight without any of them ever meeting you. At the same time, if he had injured you, he'd be arrested for injuring a Confirmed Lord even if you didn't press charges. But no matter what happens, it can create a huge mess. This is also why his father was so harsh on him, because Malfoy has a lot of allies amongst the Noble Houses right now, but if it was to become public knowledge that his Heir got into a fight with a Confirmed Lord from an Ancient and Noble House, he would lose a lot of those allies. I'm not saying they aren't above trying to hex you when alone, but for Draco to have done so in a public area was a problem."

"Wow, I didn't realize that. I'm glad I know, because I wouldn't want to get into a fight with any of them. I hold two Ancient and Noble seats and that can really make a difference."

Sirius smiles. "Harry, you shouldn't get into a fight with anyone. But yes, you are correct, you could really make a difference. But like I said that while it's not impossible, it is hard to get all seven Ancient and Noble houses to agree on something. However, the fact that you are a Confirmed Lord from two Ancient and Noble houses and two Noble Houses will really help you when you try to find allies. Even if you can't get all seven Ancient and Noble houses to agree, you have a lot of pull to get enough votes for a two thirds majority which is needed to pass any law or law change. Now that you know who the Heirs are at Hogwarts, we need to go over basic protocols on how to address them, what to do and not do around them, and what the formal response is to a variety of requests. These protocols are the same for the Heirs as they are for the Lords, with the exception of the title with which you address them. Let's get some tea first because my mouth is dry from all this talking, and then we'll get started on that."

Harry calls for Dobby and soon they have tea and biscuits in front of them. Remus walks in to see how things are going and decides to join them for tea.

"It's a lot of information Remus. I'm glad I'm learning it now because I would have made a complete idiot of myself if I hadn't known. Besides, half of the heirs are Slytherins and if I got into a fight with any of them it would ruin my reputation before I even had a chance to prove myself!"

"I agree Harry, it's a lot to take in. I studied the workings of Wizengamot once because I was curious how it worked, and I'd seen some of the interactions between Sirius and other heirs at Hogwarts so I know some about that. For those who are not of an Ancient and Noble or a Noble House, we don't have as many protocols. We are simply expected to know who the Lords and Heirs are, and address them as such when addressing them formally. I'm glad that as professors we don't have to. It could get confusing."

"Why don't you have to?"

"It was decided that teachers in school did not have to address the Lords and Heirs as such in order to maintain equality in the classroom. It is believed that in the classroom every student is equal, and if we were to address some students differently, it would create inequality."

"That makes sense I suppose. How about if a teacher is an heir or a Lord. Would we still address them as professor?"

"That can get tricky. It has been a long time since an Heir or Lord was a professor. Usually the responsibilities of being an Heir or a Lord make it impossible for that person to also teach full time. However, if for instance Severus were to accept his Lordship, he would remain a teacher since he doesn't have a large family he is responsible for and the house elves can take care of the estate. As Confirmed Lord he'd get enough freedom to leave the castle as needed as long as it doesn't interfere with his classes. Technically he should then also be addressed as Lord Prince. It will be up to Severus whether he requires it. Once he accepts the Lordship, you should address him as Lord Prince until he tells you otherwise. It will likely be an announcement in the Great Hall, at which time the headmaster will also announce what Severus wishes to be address as."

"So in that situation it is really up to the Heir or Lord?"

"Yes it is. Severus has chosen to not announce that he the Heir at this time, so right now he's still Professor Snape. However, all the Ancient and Noble and the Noble Houses keep up with who the Heirs and Lords are, and they all know that Severus is an Un-Confirmed Lord. Most Heirs will likely address him as Heir Prince in private. They won't do so in public until it's announced."

"So I should address him as Heir Prince next time I see him?"

"No Harry, you don't have to. You can keep calling me Severus in private and Professor Snape in public." Severus says from the doorway.

Harry startles slightly at hearing his voice behind him. "I didn't hear you come in. How long have you been standing there?"

Severus smiles. "I just walked in and heard your comment. I came to see if I left my potions journal here yesterday. I'm done with my marking and decided to relax by the fire and read a bit, but couldn't find it."

"It's on the kitchen table Severus." Remus replies.

"Thank you. I'll let you all get back to your lessons." Severus says after walking into the kitchen and getting his journal.

"Alright Harry, let's get back to the lessons. We have a little over an hour until dinner and you have a meeting with the headmaster afterwards. We should have just enough time to teach you the basic greetings." Sirius says while standing up. "Stand up and come face me, we're going to do some role playing."

The next hour Sirius walks Harry through all the formal greetings and ways to address and Heir or Lord. By the time they are done, Harry lets out a sigh.

"Who knew there could be so many different ways to address someone depending on the location and who they are."

"It's not as bad as it seems, it will become second nature. If you remember to address them by their title, and kiss the hand of the Ladies and simply nod at the Lords and Heirs, you have most of it correct already. Everyone knows you are new at this, so nobody will count it against you if you make a few mistakes at first. It's time for us to go down to dinner. Here is a book that writes out all the different requests and corresponding responses that can be made between Lords and Heirs. There are a lot of them, so it is easier if you studied them all and tried to simply memorize them. There are also the formal requests members of your Houses can make of you as their Lord, and ways to respond to those, and formal ways to disown or reinstate a member."

"Thank you Sirius, I will study this when I can. I'm going to take my things to my room and then head down to dinner. I will see you tomorrow in class."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

After dropping off his books in his room, Harry heads down to the Great Hall. He doesn't see any of his friends, and assumes they are already there. His assumptions are correct when he sees them already sitting down, waiting for the food to be served. He sits down at the Gryffindor table next to Hermione and across from Neville and Ron. He remembers his earlier lessons, looks at Neville and says "Good evening Heir Longbottom" with a nod of his head. Out of the corner of his eye he sees the surprised expressions on his housemates faces as this is the first time they've heard Harry address anyone that way.

"Good evening Lord Potter-Black. You may continue to call me Neville in informal settings as we are friends."

"Thank you Neville. You may continue to call me Harry in informal settings."

Neville smiles. "So Harry, I take it you've had some lessons in protocol? I must say it's about time."

Harry smiles back. "Yes, Sirius taught me the protocols in regards to greetings and such today. He also explained the workings of the Wizengamot. I should have learned all of this years ago but I had no clue. I'm not surprised you know I'm Lord Potter-Black. Sirius explained that most Houses stay on top of these things."

"Yes, my grandmother tells me when there is a change. It is protocol to not mention it until it has either been publicly announced or the new Lord or Heir has addressed you by your title. I assumed you were either keeping it quiet for a reason, or you were not taught the proper protocols yet."

"A little of both. I wanted to get used to this first and learn the protocols before it's announced. We knew it wasn't a secret, but until today I didn't know any of the protocols. There were so many things for me to learn over the summer that I've had a busy schedule ever since I found out."

"Are you ever going to assume your full name?"

"Not likely. It would be a mouthful." Harry grins. Neville grins back.

"Mate, what does he mean Lord Potter-Black? And what does he mean your full name?" Ron asked, looking confused.

"Ron, dad told us about this over the summer. Don't you remember?" George asked.

"No, I don't. Are you sure I was there?"

"I think you were, but maybe not. Dad told us when he found out so that we were aware in case Lord Potter-Black addressed dad or Bill formally."

"Oh. Well I must not have been there. So Harry, what's going on?" Ron asked, looking at Harry again. He doesn't see Neville, Fred and George cringe at his informal address of Harry. Fred and George look at each other, and without saying a word agree to discuss protocols with Ron later. While they aren't the heir to the Weasley House, they are still a member of a Noble House and should behave as such.

"George, thank you for the formal address but you may call me Harry in informal settings. In fact, that is true for all of you. We are amongst friends, and amongst friends I'm Harry. Ron, I am Lord Potter, Lord Black, Lord Gryffindor and Lord Peverell. I do not want such a long name, and therefore I go by Lord Potter-Black."

"Wow mate, that's insane!" Ron says with a slight hint of jealousy. With all the older brothers he has, there is almost no chance of him ever becoming Heir or Lord of House Weasley, and now Harry is Lord of four Houses!

Harry simply smiles back, not sure what to say. Hermione looks thoughtful. "Harry, I've read some about the wizengamot and its workings and about the Sacred Twenty-Eight. House Potter and House Black are both Ancient and Noble, and House Gryffindor and House Peverell are both Noble, correct?"

"Yes Hermione, that is correct."

"That is amazing Harry. When are you making the announcement?"

"Sirius said something about us having to do a formal announcement soon, since I can't keep it secret forever. I'm comfortable enough with it now that I don't mind people knowing. We went over all the Houses today and who the Heirs are that are currently at Hogwarts so that I can properly address them."

"Well I'm glad you have someone who can teach you Harry." Hermione says right when the food appears on the tables.

Neville looks at Harry before getting food. "Harry, if you have any questions or need help, you know where to find me. My grandmother has been really strict about me learning everything and memorizing everything."

"Thank you Neville, I will keep that in mind. Sirius gave me a book that goes over all the protocols for requests and such, and he wants me to memorize them all along with the responses."

"There are quite a few of them, but they all follow the same general principle. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it soon."

Harry simply nods and starts putting food on his plate. Nobody in the group has noticed that the headmaster was listening in on their conversation through an eavesdropping spell. He had heard part of the conversation while walking past the table, and wanted to hear the rest.

The remainder of dinner was slightly anti-climactic and soon it is time for Harry to head to the headmasters office. He had suggested the idea of an all-house common room to his friends at lunch earlier that day and most of them had seem enthusiastic over it.

Upon entering the headmasters office, Dumbledore offers him a seat and a lemon drop.

"No thank you headmaster."

"Well Harry, you requested this meeting. What can I do for you?"

"Headmaster, I had an idea that I think will help with house unity. See, I have access to all the common rooms and I have met people from all houses. During an all-house Quidditch pickup game we all got along great and all four houses were represented. I think it would be nice to do more things like that so that everyone can get to know people from other houses. Right now we don't really hang out with those from other houses unless we knew them before we came to Hogwarts or meet them in classes. We all simply go to our common rooms in the evenings and spend time with our housemates. While that is good and promotes house unity, I was thinking it might be nice to have an all-house common room somewhere in the castle. It would be a place just like all the other common rooms where students can hang out, play games or do homework. Just because we are in different houses, doesn't mean we can't be friends. And while we can work on homework together in the library, the library isn't a great place for discussions or tutoring since we aren't supposed to talk in there."

"I think that is a wonderful idea Harry. I will think of a space that we can use and have the house elves decorate it in all four house colors. We will make sure there are fireplaces, couches and tables. Maybe even a small kitchenette with coffee and tea like the teachers' common room. I believe house unity will become even more important in the years to come. I will however have to assign a staff member to supervise the common room at least for the first year to see how things go. We don't want there to be any major problems, and this way things can be dealt with and improved upon easily. How does that sound?"

"That sounds fine headmaster. Thank you."

"You're welcome Harry. While I have you in here, I overheard some of your conversation at dinner. Am I correct in assuming you have assumed your Lordship?"

"Yes, Headmaster I have. I have assumed all four of my Lordships, but I go by Lord Potter-Black. I found out about them earlier this summer, and with help of Gringotts I claimed the rings." Harry says with a blank look on his face. He's unsure how the headmaster will react, but he has noticed the twinkle leaving his eyes.

"That is wonderful Harry. I received notice that I was no longer your magical guardian but I had assumed that Sirius had filed for guardianship. Your files at the ministry are sealed for good reasons, so I wasn't able to check on it. Now I'm assuming you were emancipated?"

"Yes headmaster, I am. However, I have asked Sirius and Remus to be guardians since I'm only fourteen and I'm not old enough to live on my own. I believe it is customary for underage Lords." Harry said, acting as if he knows less than he does. In the meantime he is getting irritated the the headmaster has yet to acknowledge him by his title.

"Yes Harry, it is. Hogwarts also requires an adult to be on file for each student in case something happens. I had seen where your guardian was listed as Sirius at the beginning of the school year. Madame Pomfrey also mentioned that your medical file had updated accordingly."

"I understand headmaster." Harry replies in a neutral tone. He is ready for this meeting to be over.

"Well Harry, if there is nothing else, I should let you get back to your common room. Will you be publicly announcing your Lordship?"

"Yes Headmaster, I will have Sirius send in the announcement to the paper tonight so it should be in the prophet tomorrow. Quite a few people know now and it's time to make the announcement."

"Excellent Harry. I will announce the location of the new all-house common room at dinner tomorrow."

"Thank you headmaster. Have a good evening." And with a slight nod Harry leaves the office.

Dumbledore watches Harry leave the office, uncomfortable with what he has just found out. _It is really unfortunate that he has found out about his Lordships, and for him to claim all four! I hope he hasn't assigned proxies yet for the Wizengamot. I should really talk to Severus and see if he can find out how much the boy knows. It doesn't sound like he knows much, but I'd rather make sure. Now that he knows about the Lordships I should try to guide him into thinking the way I want him to think. Those compulsion potions should help with that, but maybe I should have Severus brew me one and slip it into Harry's tea next time I have him in my office. I don't need to tell Severus who it's for, and he probably wouldn't care if he knew. He hates the boy after all. Yes, I'll do that. I need to keep some control over the boy. All for the greater good off course._

Meanwhile Harry has made it back to the Gryffindor common room, where he informs his friends that the headmaster has approved his idea and will announce the location at dinner the next evening. He then bids everyone a goodnight, wanting to get some reading in before bed. When he walks into his room, he takes Ella out of her habitat and sits down on the bed with her and the book on protocols. He quickly scribbles a note to Sirius to ask him to send out the public announcement.

"**It will be nice when I don't have to study so much anymore. All this catching up is exhausting"** Harry said to Ella

"**There are always things to learn. When you stop learning, you stop living."**

"**That might be true, but at least I can take it easier and maybe occasionally read a book for fun instead of for studying."**

"**So if I were to tell you there's another form of magic you can learn, you'd tell me no?"**

"**What are you talking about? My guardians have explained all the types of magic already."**

"**They don't know this one because they are not speakers. It is parselmagic. Only speakers can do it."**

"**Okay you have my attention. Explain what parselmagic is. There are only two speakers alive today so that could be useful to know."**

"**parselmagic is magic done in parseltongue. It can only be undone with parselmagic. Most spells can't be done in parseltongue because the incantations don't exist in our language, but things like wards can be done in parseltongue and be made stronger."**

"**Where do I find more information on this?"**

"**I don't know. Salazar Slytherin wrote a lot of things down in his journals, but nobody knows where they are. You can try doing magic in parseltongue and see if it works. Hexes and transfiguration don't usually work, but charms often do. This is all I know. It is what I was taught as a snakeling."**

"**Thank you Ella. When I have time, I'll think about where we could find those journals and practice some parselmagic. I'm sorry I haven't been spending much time with you in here."**

"**It is alright. My habitat is warm and comfortable. Am I allowed to come with you in the school?"**

"**Yes you are, I have a permission slip signed. I can't bring you to class, but maybe on the weekends or in the evenings you can come with me and my friends can get used to you."**

"**Thank you. You need to study now, it is late."**

Harry gives Ella a somewhat indignant look but opens his book anyway. He decides to read through it first before trying to memorize any of it. He assumes that this way he's at least familiar with it all if he hears it. He ends up falling asleep with Ella curled on his lap and his book on his chest.

The next morning Harry wakes up disoriented and looks around. Ella is now asleep at the foot of his bed, and his book is laying next to him. He looks down and realizes he is still dressed in his clothes from the day before. He picks up Ella and puts her back in her habitat before getting ready for the day. He is anxious, knowing that the announcement will be in the paper this morning. Even though all of his friends know, and all the other heirs likely know as well, he is still nervous over the general reaction by the school. Luckily he won't have to deal with the Wizarding Public in general until at least the holidays. When he is ready to go down to the Great Hall, he quickly writes a note to Lord Peterson to warn him of the announcement. This way he can be prepared. He sends it off with Hedwig. He also writes a note to Ragnok, so that they can be prepared for the influx in mail they might receive for him.

"Dobby."

"Yes Master Harry, how may Dobby help you."

"Please take this note straight to Ragnok. Hedwig is already out making a delivery."

"Dobby will do this right now Master Harry." Dobby says right before popping out of the room clutching the note. He is back less than a minute later. "Dobby delivered the note Master Harry. Ragnok says he is prepared."

"Thank you Dobby."

Harry leaves his room and heads down to the Great Hall. He hesitates at first as to where to sit, but decides to sit surrounded by the people who already know about his new status at the Gryffindor table.

"Good morning Harry." Neville says.

"Good morning Neville. I have a question. The public announcement will be in the morning paper. Should I be expecting anything?"

"That is wonderful Harry. Yes, you can expect all the other Heirs to come wish you well first chance they get. Do you know the proper response for that yet?"

"No I don't. What is it?"

"The heir will say: "I wish you well Lord Potter-Black." It is a simple way for them to acknowledge your new status. You will then have one of two responses. The first is "Thank you Heir (insert their name)" with a slight nod. You don't kiss the hand of female heirs, only female Ladies. The will then move on, or they can say something else but most will move on after that. Your other response is for those you are friendly with. It is "Thank you Heir (insert their name). You may call me (insert what you want them to call you) in informal settings." School is considered an informal setting unless they are making a formal request. They will then reply with a thank you using the name you told them to address you with. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, it seems very straightforward. Thank you. So I should be prepared to have my breakfast interrupted a lot?"

"Yes. The good part is that they are not supposed to approach you during class, but they can before or after class."

"Oh good. And Sirius explained how teachers don't have to address me by my title, correct?"

"That is correct. However, most teachers will acknowledge your title before or after class. However, there is no formal response when someone other than an Heir or Lord acknowledges your title. You simply say thank you. For students you would then either give permission to call you by your first name if you wish to do so. For teachers you don't have to since they are assumed to call you Mr. Potter after that. However, those teachers that read the announcement will likely call you Mr. Potter-Black to keep in line with your title."

"Thank you Neville!"

Everyone at the table had been listening to this conversation, and Hermione seemed delighted to learn all these new things she wasn't familiar with. They all started eating breakfast, waiting for the owl post to arrive. They were almost done eating, and the Great Hall was full when it finally did. Harry had gotten a subscription to the Daily Prophet at the end of the summer so that he could stay on top of what was published instead of always finding out from someone else. He unfolded his copy, and not entirely to his surprise, staring back at him was a big front page picture of himself. _I should have known it would be on the front page._

THE BOY WHO LIVED TO BECOME A LORD!

Here at the Daily Prophet we received a public announcement late on Sunday evening. While many were already aware that Harry Potter was an Un-Confirmed Lord for House Potter, we don't think anyone was prepared for the events of this summer. We are now announcing that Harry Potter has claimed the Lordship Rings for the following Houses: The Ancient and Noble House of Potter, The Ancient and Noble House of Black, the Noble House of Gryffindor and the Noble House of Peverell. Harry Potter is now officially known as Lord Potter-Black. After doing a little bit of research, we have also discovered that Lord Potter-Black has been emancipated since claiming his Lordships, which is common for underage Lords. His guardian of record until he comes of age is none other than Sirius Black! When contacting Gringotts to find out when all this came to be, we were advised to contact Lord Potter-Black's solicitor, Lord Henry Peterson. Lord Henry-Peterson was unavailable for comment at the time this issue went to print, but we at the Daily Prophet will do our best to find out more and inform our readers as soon as possible. Until that time, we at the Daily Prophet wish Lord Potter-Black well!

By the time Harry was done reading the short article, the Great Hall had gone silent and most students had turned to look at him. He glanced up at the Head Table and saw encouraging smiles from Sirius and Remus. He also noticed that most of the teachers had smiles on their faces (with the exception of Severus, who had his usual blank face). He noticed the twinkle was absent from the headmaster's eyes, but wasn't sure what could have caused that since the headmaster was already aware of his status. Little did Harry know that it was because of the announcement that he had a solicitor, since the headmaster had wanted to recommend one the headmaster knew would help him lead Harry in the direction he wanted him to go in. Now that that plan wasn't going to work, he had to think of a new one.

It took several long minutes of silence, but slowly the students began whispering to each other. Many of the muggle-born students were asking questions, trying to find out what the significance was. A group of Slytherin students got up from their table, and started making their way towards Harry. All the teachers and most of the students watched them as they made their way across the hall. Those that stayed on top of who the Lords and Heirs were knew that these were all Heirs to various Houses. When they reached Harry they came to a stop, and Harry stood up from the bench to face them. Theodore Nott stepped forward first.

"I wish you well Lord Potter-Black."

"Thank you Heir Nott." Harry replied with a slight nod of his head. Nott stepped back and turned around to go back to his table. Malfoy was next to step towards Harry.

"I wish you well Lord Potter-Black."

"Thank you Heir Malfoy." Harry said, once again with a slight nod of his head. Malfoy followed Nott back to his table. This continued until all the Slytherin Heirs had wished him well. Before he could sit down however, Ernie Macmillan stepped up to him, followed by Hannah Abbott and Susan Bones. They each wished him well, but with them Harry gave the second response and invited them to call him Harry. They all smiled at him at this and returned to their table. By this time it was time for all of them to head to class. Harry grabbed his bag, and gave a quick look up at the Head Table. Sirius had an approving look on his face, obviously impressed that Harry had handled it so well and had followed protocol. Harry told his friends he'd meet them in class and walked up to the Head Table.

"How did I do Sirius?" he asked softly. The only teachers left at the table were Severus, Sirius, Remus and Professor Flitwick.

"You did excellent Harry. You looked very calm and collected and exactly like a Lord should look."

"I didn't feel calm and collected. I occluded the whole time to keep my nerves from showing."

"Well you did a good job. You should head to class before you get in trouble for being late." Sirius says with a smirk. Considering that Remus is still sitting at the table, that is not very likely.

Harry grins back. "I know, I have this awful teacher for my first class. He is very strict and I'd likely be in detention for weeks if I was late." Unfortunately for Harry he's not fast enough to get out of the way of the playful slap Remus aims at his backside. He laughs when he sees Remus smiling. "Just kidding Remus. I do need to go though."

Before Harry can leave, Professor Flitwick stops him with a smile. "I wish you well Lord Potter-Black."

"Thank you Professor." Harry replies with a smile before turning around and leaving the Great Hall. He makes it up to the classroom only a few seconds before Remus and grins at him when he walks into the room.

The rest of the day Harry gets well wishes from a lot of students, and when it is finally time for dinner he sits down with a sigh. His friends look at him in sympathy, having witnessed all the well wishes that day. Luckily nobody approaches them during dinner. When dinner is almost over, the headmaster stands up and silences the Great Hall.

"I hope everyone is enjoying their dinner. I have a quick announcement to make. Last night I was approached by Mr. Potter-Black with the idea to create an all-house common room where students from all houses can spend time together. I agreed with his reasoning, and I am happy to announce that the house elves have worked all day to get this room ready. The all-house common room is on the Second Floor, right by the Transfiguration classroom. It will be open after classes end in the afternoon, and close at curfew. All students from all years and all houses are welcome there to hang out, play games or simply work on homework. There are fireplaces, couches and tables just like in your regular common rooms. For at least the first year there will be a staff member in this common room to ensure there are no problems. Please let your Head of House know if you have questions regarding this room, or if you have suggestions to improve it. The room will open for the first time tomorrow."

There is an excited whisper going through the Great Hall after the headmaster sits back down. Many students look excited, even at the Slytherin table. Many students thank Harry for giving the headmaster the idea when they walk past him to leave the Great Hall. When Cedric walks up to him, Harry smiles back.

"Harry, that was a great idea. Are you still coming to the pitch tonight?"

"Yes, I will be there soon. I just need to go change and get my broom" Harry smiles back. He is excited to go flying again. A few minutes later Harry gets up from the table, says goodbye to his friends and practically runs up to his room. He quickly changes, grabs his broom and runs down to the pitch. There is already a group there, and it doesn't take them long to start a pickup game. They fly for several hours until they spot a black figure down on the ground waving them down. When they land they notice it is Professor Snape.

"It is after curfew, why are you all still out here?" He says with a glare.

Cedric speaks up first. "I apologize sir, we didn't realize it was this late. We were having such a good time playing that we lost track of time. We will all go inside now."

"I will let it go this time because I approve of the fact that all houses are represented equally and taking points would be useless, but next time make sure you finish before curfew. The next time you will all find yourself in detention."

Harry had been at the opposite side of the pitch when everyone had landed, and he is the last of the group to leave the pitch. Severus is waiting for him to make his way across, and they are several yards behind the rest of the group, who are all making their way inside quickly to avoid getting in further trouble. Harry doesn't dare look up at Severus, knowing he'd get a disapproving look.

"Did I not teach you the alarm spell this summer?"

"Yes sir, you did."

"So why didn't you use it? You know you always lose track of time when flying. It would have warned you it was time for curfew."

"I didn't think sir. I'm sorry."

"Next time, use the spell. It is not safe out here in the dark. That's why we have curfew. Detention won't be the only thing you'll get if you are caught out here in the dark or after curfew again, understood?"

"Yes sir" Harry replies, still not looking up at Severus. He knows Severus is talking to him as his guardian, not as his teacher and he hates disappointing his guardians.

When Harry and Severus reach the castle doors Severus lands a quick smack on Harry's backside before telling him goodnight and heading down to the dungeons. Harry rubs his bum, even though it didn't hurt and he can't even feel it anymore. He knows it wasn't meant to hurt, but was meant as a warning. He tells himself he will set an alarm spell from now on, not wanting to get caught out after curfew again.

He reaches the Hufflepuf common room and walks inside, but he doesn't stop to talk to anyone. He is tired from that day and from flying, and decides to put off his homework until the next evening. He quickly gets ready for bed, and he's asleep the minute his head hits the pillow. He doesn't notice Sirius coming in a half hour later to check on him. Sirius had come to see how Harry was doing with all the additional attention, but seeing Harry asleep so early he decides to just let him sleep and talk to him the next day. He gives him a quick kiss on top of his head, pulls the covers up a little bit higher and leaves the room with a smile.


	24. Chapter 24

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Chapter 24

The following morning at breakfast Sirius sits down next to Severus, with Remus on his other side. He grins at Severus, but doesn't say anything, and starts putting food on his plate. Throughout breakfast he keeps grinning, and it is slowly starting to annoy Severus. Finally he asks the question he is dreading the answer to.

"Why are you grinning like a fool Sirius?"

"On my way down I heard a rumor that you caught a group of students outside after curfew and didn't take points or assign detention."

"And this is making you grin why?"

"You mean to tell me the rumor is true? You, the greasy bat of the dungeons, didn't punish students breaking the rules?"

"The rumor is true. I caught an all-house Quidditch pickup game outside after curfew. All houses were represented so taking points seemed useless as it wouldn't have any effect. I don't see why it's making you grin like that."

"Because Severus, you my friend are going soft."

Severus glares at Sirius. "I am not going soft. I did not feel like having over twenty students in detention, and I gave them a warning that they will get detention next time they are caught outside. Besides, I figured you'd be happy Harry didn't get detention."

"Harry was with them? Then why is he sitting over there with his friends laughing?"

They all look over where Harry is sitting. "Why wouldn't he be?"

"You mean to tell me that you not only let all those students off without punishment, you didn't punish Harry as his guardian? You really are going soft." Sirius says, a large smile on his face.

Severus' glare increases, if that's at all possible. "I gave him a serious warning that detention isn't the only thing he's going to get if he's caught again. Besides that I don't think it's right to punish him when none of the other students were punished. I have a feeling they won't be losing track of time again anytime soon. Now if you are done laughing at me, I have classes to teach."

"I'm not laughing at you, I'm just happy. See you at lunch!" Sirius replies with a smile.

After Severus leaves, Sirius and Remus look at each other in shock. "You'd almost think he truly cares about Harry. The Severus we used to know would have had them all in detention and would have had Harry over his knee last night." Sirius says softly.

"I don't just think he cares about Harry, I know he does. He knew Harry was out there last night, and I have no doubt he went to make sure Harry made it inside alright when he caught them. And the fact that Harry is able to sit on that bench comfortably today is proof that Severus really doesn't want to punish him any more than we do. He might not say it out loud or admit to it, but Severus does have a heart, and I believe Harry has found his way to it somehow."

Sirius doesn't have a reply to that, even though he has to admit that he agrees with that assessment. He has noticed that his godson, without realizing that he's doing it, is winning the hearts of many of those around him. He smiles in Harry's direction, sees him joking around with his friends, and then gets up to head to class as well.

Harry's morning has gotten off to a great start. He wakes up feeling well rested, and at breakfast they are all chatting about inconsequential things. Fred and George are showing off some of their inventions, and before too long they are laughing. When Harry gets to Charms, he once again pretends to struggle with the Charm before succeeding right before the end of class. He doesn't notice the calculating look Professor Flitwick gives him. The rest of his classes go well, and soon he is done for the day. He knows he has a lot of homework to complete, but he wants to check out the new common room so he heads there first. Several of his friends decide to join him.

When they walk in, Sirius is already there. He is sitting at a desk in the corner, facing the rest of the room. Harry looks around and is impressed by the size of the room. He realizes this would easily fit at least a quarter of the student body. The couches look comfortable and are a mix of the various house colors. The walls are a neutral color, and there are several large tables on one side of the room. Sirius nods at them when they walk in, and they head over to one of the fireplaces with four couches next to it. Soon they are joined by several Hufflepuf and Ravenclaw students from their year. They are all impressed by the room, and by how easily the conversation flows even though they don't know the other students well. Soon Sirius announces it is time for dinner, and they all leave to head down to the Great Hall.

At dinner, they all talk excitedly about the new room, and several more Gryffindors decide to go there after dinner. Harry notices the same at the Hufflepuf and Ravenclaw tables. He has a feeling this room will be a success in the long run, be he also knows that eventually there will be some problems. Before going to the room after dinner he goes to his room to get his homework. When he gets back to the Common Room, he sees students from Ravenclaw, Hufflepuf and Gryffindor for various years scattered around. He sees an empty seat at a table with several students already studying, and decides to join them. Sirius and Remus are both in the corner of the room marking essays. It does not escape anyone's notice that there are no Slytherin students in the room. When Harry is done with half his homework, the door opens and a Slytherin girl walks in carrying several books. The room falls completely silent, and she looks around nervously. When it looks like she is about to turn around and leave, Harry decides to intervene and walks over to her.

"Hi, I'm not sure we've ever met. I'm Harry."

She looks at him in shock. "I know who you are. I'm Sara. I'm a third year."

"Welcome to the all house common room Sara. By the look of those books you were planning on doing homework?"

"Yeah, I struggle with Defense and was hoping to get my essay done while here."

"Well, why don't you come over to that table. I'm good at Defense and can help you."

Sara looks at Harry in awe, amazed that he is speaking to her so nicely when all she's ever heard is how Gryffindors hate Slytherins and how Harry would never associate with Slytherins. "I'd love to, thank you." Once she sits down, she doesn't start right away. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

Harry looks puzzled at that. "Why wouldn't I be? You seem like a nice girl, and I've never met you so I have no reason not to like you."

"But you used to be a Gryffindor and you hate Slytherins."

Harry sighs. He had a feeling this would come up eventually. "I do not hate Slytherins. I don't care what house someone is in, it's who you are that matters. Yes, there are some Slytherins with whom I'll never be friends, but that's not because they are in Slytherin, it's because of the person they are." He notices that the common room is still quiet and everyone is listening. "Just because there has always been rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin, doesn't mean we should stereotype everyone in those houses and hate them just because of which color bed they sleep in at night. I admire your strength to walk in here, knowing that you'd like be the only one from Slytherin here."

Sara is blushing at the compliment. "Thank you Harry. I like the idea of this room, even if my house won't like that I came. Hopefully more of them will follow soon."

"I hope so too Sara. Now what are you studying in Defense?"

And with that final comment, Harry starts helping Sara with her Defense homework and everyone else, realizing that the conversation is over, gets back to what they were doing. Over in the corner Sirius and Remus are smiling, knowing that this is Harry being Harry.

The rest of the week goes in the same fashion. Harry goes to meals in the Great Hall and sits at various tables, and after classes he goes to the All House Common Room where he sits with his friends or with anyone else that happens to be there. Twice he spends a few hours in the evening with Sirius and Remus. One night he gets an introduction into Arithmancy, the other night they practice Defense. He loves these extra lessons, and truly looks forward to them.

By the end of the week he has met most of the students from Hufflepuf and Ravenclaw. Besides Sara, another third year Slytherin girl named Amanda has joined her in the Common Room, but none of the other Slytherins have. Harry assumes it will just take more time, as Slytherin has always stuck to themselves over the years. A different teacher is in the common room each day, and they are all impressed by how well everyone gets along. Off course there is still house rivalry and pride outside of the All House Common Room, but they are leaving house associations at the door to the common room.

On Wednesday Harry plays another pick up Quidditch game and this time he remembers to set his alarm spell, which ends up being the only reason they are all inside right before curfew. None of them notice Severus standing by a window watching them, and smiling softly when he sees them heading inside right on time. The novelty of Harry's Lordship has passed, and almost everyone treats him the way they always have. The one exception is Slytherin House.

Throughout the week Harry starts to notice that instead of making comments towards Harry or his friends, they are now being ignored by all upperclassmen Slytherins. The most obvious is Malfoy, to the point where other students are starting to notice. They had gotten used to the snide comments back and forth between them, and now that there aren't any, it is noticed easily. The teachers are also noticing this, but they are happy they don't have to step in anymore. Harry on the other hand is slightly worried, feeling as if something is off and they are planning something. He doesn't know what, and he's not even sure if they are, but it just doesn't feel right to him. He has also noticed that the headmaster is looking at him more often especially in the Great Hall, but he can't figure out why.

On Saturday it's the first Hogsmeade weekend of the year. At breakfast there is a lot of excitement in the air, as everyone third year and older is excited to get out of the castle. Harry is planning on going with a mixed group of friends which includes Luna, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Dean and Seamus. Before they walk out of the castle they are stopped by Sirius who pulls Harry off to the side.

"I know there will be a lot of teachers and students in Hogsmeade but I want you to be careful, alright? This is your first time in Hogsmeade so don't wander off by yourself"

"I will Sirius. I'm so excited, this is the first time I can be seen in Hogsmeade and I look forward to it. I will be careful."

"What do you mean the first time you can be seen there? I thought you weren't allowed to go at all last year?"

"I wasn't." Harry replies with a mischievous grin.

"I'm not going to ask. Just be careful. I will be there with Remus so if you need anything, just let us know but we won't hover."

"Alright Sirius. Bye!" and with that Harry turns around and runs after his friends.

Remus comes up behind Sirius and puts a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry so much. We will be there and he'll be fine. They're in a good size group."

"I know, and there's not much danger out there yet, but I can't help but worry. He somehow seems to attract trouble. Is Severus going to be there today?"

"No, he said something about a meeting with the headmaster, and after that he has some brewing to do for the hospital wing."

"Alright. Well let's head down there. It will be nice to sit in the Three Broomsticks and have a relaxing drink, even if we are chaperoning."

While most of the castle is at Hogsmeade, Severus is making his way to the headmaster's office. He has no idea why the headmaster wants to talk to him, but he has a bad feeling. He has noticed the looks the headmaster has been sending Harry all week, and he wishes he knows what is going on inside his head. With his Occlumency shields raised to full strength he steps through the door.

"Ahh, Severus, have a seat. Lemon drop?"

"No thank you sir." Severus replies while taking a seat. He then simple sits there waiting for the headmaster to start the conversation.

"Severus, have you noticed anything strange or new about Mr. Potter?"

"No headmaster, not particularly. Potter is slightly more well behaved than he has been, but that is likely because he finally has someone to hold him accountable for his actions. It came as a surprise to me to find out that Black actually enforces rules."

"Hmm, yes I wasn't expecting that either. Then again, the whole trial was a surprise to me" Dumbledore says with a frown.

Severus doesn't respond, but can't help being surprised. He had been under the impression that Dumbledore had known about the trial in advance, but it seems Lord Peterson had been able to hide the trial from Dumbledore. He decides to see how that was possible, he might learn something from it.

"I called you in here Severus because I need your assistance with a potion. I believe you are brewing for the infirmary today?"

"Yes sir, I am."

"Do you think you might be able to find time to brew me a potion" Dumbledore says while handing over an opened book. "I want the potion on that page. I know it's not a common potion, but I might have need for it in the near future and would like to keep it just in case."

"I can brew this sir, but if you don't mind me asking, why do you need it?" Severus asks with a blank face. Inside he is seething, knowing the answer perfectly well. "This potion would compel the person drinking it to lose their sense of self-preservation. They would run headfirst into danger if they felt it was the right thing to do, no matter how dangerous."

"Yes Severus, I am aware of what the potion does. I don't have an immediate need, and I'd rather not disclose why I need it, but I feel that there will be a time when it will be better to not think about the danger before doing something."

"Very well headmaster. This potion is not illegal but it is controlled, so I do need a written request for my files so that when the Ministry comes around to check which controlled potions I've brewed, I can show them that you requested it. If you wouldn't mind providing me a written request for the potion, I can brew it this afternoon."

"I have the request already written up right here Severus. I truly appreciate it. Would you mind delivering me that potion as soon as it's finished?"

"I will have an elf deliver it as soon as possible. If you don't mind, I'd like to go to my lab and start brewing so that I may be finished before everyone gets back from Hogsmeade."

"Very well Severus. Let me know if you need anything."

Severus walks out of the headmaster's office and straight to his private lab. When he gets there he grabs an empty vial that's laying on the table and throws it at the wall. He watches it chatter in satisfaction, and it releases some of his anger. He waves his wand to clean up the glass, and starts brewing the potions needed. He is hoping it will help him get his mind off the headmaster and his plans.

Meanwhile, Harry is having a blast in Hogsmeade. They have already stopped at almost every store there, and Harry's pockets are filled with candy from Honeydukes and joke products from Zonko's. He's happy to be able to do magic so he doesn't have to carry around all his purchases like most students. He shrunk his friends' purchases as well to help them out, since they can't do magic away from school. They have made their way to the Three Broomsticks and find a table towards the back. Soon they are all drinking butterbeer happily. Since it is lunchtime they all get something to eat, and Harry is happily eating his Shepherd's Pie and smiling at his friends. All too soon the teachers start coming around announcing that it is time to head back to the school, and the group starts making their way back. Harry is happy and relaxed, and realizes that a day out of the castle with his friends is exactly what he needed.

When Harry walks into the castle, he is stopped and pulled to the side by Sirius.

"Harry, Severus is calling a family meeting. Go put your things in your room, and then come to our quarters, alright?"

"Sure Sirius" Harry says with a frown, wondering what's going on. "I'll be there soon."

When Harry gets to their quarters fifteen minutes later, he walks in on Sirius and Remus sitting calmly on the couch while Severus is pacing in an agitated manner. Harry is surprised, since Severus normally keeps his calm very well.

"Harry, sit down." Severus says. Harry doesn't even think about disobeying or questioning the order, not wanting to provoke Severus. He does notice Severus placing several anti-eavesdropping spells around the room. A look at Sirius and Remus tells him they have noticed the same thing.

"What I am about to tell you can't leave this room. Let me finish talking before you ask questions. The headmaster called me into his office this morning to ask him for a potion. The potion is controlled so he gave me a written request, as required. I couldn't deny his request since I am the potions master, and it is in my contract to brew any potion that the headmaster requests, as long as it's not illegal and as long as he provides a written request if it's controlled. When I asked him he would not tell me what he needed it for. The potion makes the drinker lose their sense of self-preservation and run headfirst into danger if they feel it's the right thing to do. I got the sense that this will not be the only compelling potion he is going to request me to brew."

By the time Severus was done talking, Sirius and Remus looked furious and Harry was pacing. While talking, Severus had taken a seat in the chair.

"He asked you to brew that to give to me didn't he. I know he did, why else would he need that. He must think that the potion he has given me in the past is wearing off or something." Harry says while continuing his pacing.

"Yes, I believe that is why he needs it. I don't know where he got his potions in the past, but it is the same potion that you would have been given before. It was cleansed from your body over the summer, but this potion is also only effective for a year. After that, the drinker has to take another dose. You don't need much, it can be slipped in a cup of tea without the drinker noticing and he requested a bottle of it. It has a long shelf life, so if he wanted to, he could use it on several people for years without requesting more. He has likely slipped it into your drink the past few years without you knowing. I don't think he knows you were cleansed, I think he simply ran out of the supply he had"

Harry was getting increasingly aggravated. He knew to expect problems, but for the headmaster to try to drug him again so soon wasn't expected. He feels himself starting to lose control of his magic, and is trying to reign it in. The others have noticed it as well, and finally Severus steps in front of Harry to stop his pacing.

"Harry. Stop. This is not the time to lose control." Severus says, trying to remain calm while he can feel the powerful waves coming off Harry. When he can tell it's not working, he tries a different tactic. "Harry, that's enough. Go put your notice in that corner. Now." Severus says sternly in his "you're in trouble" voice. Harry looks at him shocked.

"What? I'm fourteen, not four. You can't send me to the corner."

"I can, and I just did. Go. Put your nose in the corner and get control of yourself. I will let you know when you can come out."

Harry looks indignant, but sees that arguing won't get him anywhere, and goes to stand in the corner. He can slowly feel himself calm down.

Meanwhile Sirius and Remus are sending Severus confused looks, not understanding why Harry is being punished when he didn't do anything wrong. Severus shakes his head at them and mouths "Trust me." Fifteen minutes later, Severus feels that Harry has gotten himself back under control and calls him out of the corner and tells him to have a seat.

"Are you calmer now?"

"Yes, but why did I get punished? I didn't do anything!"

"You weren't being punished. No, don't say anything" Severus says, noticing that Harry is about to argue. "You were about to lose control of your magic, which would have hurt all of us. I tried to get you to snap out of it, but you didn't. I had a feeling that you would respond better if I was stern with you, so I was. I told you to go to the corner so you could calm down and not lose control, not because you did something wrong. Does that make sense?"

"It does, and to be honest, looking at the wall really helped me calm down while pacing was only aggravating me more. Sorry, I didn't mean to almost blow up." Harry says apologetically.

"Don't worry Harry, it is completely understandable. I actually threw a vial at the wall when I got to my lab, that's how aggravated I was. You just found out that someone is likely trying to drug you, you have every right to be upset. And we are here to help you when you are about to lose control. I do have a suggestion that might avoid us being drugged, without having to give up eating and drinking altogether. I do believe we should all cast spells over our food and drink before eating or drinking anything. We don't know that he won't try on all three of you. Sirius, Remus, I assume you know the detection spells and how to get your wand to or hand to glow instead of the food or drink?" Severus says. Both Sirius and Remus nod.

"Alright. Harry, I have not provided the headmaster with the potion yet. It is simmering and will be done after dinner. I want you to come straight back here after dinner and I will teach you the spells. We also need to see if you can do them wandless and wordless. I know we haven't tried that yet, but it would be useful in this case. When you come back, bring whatever you need for the night and tomorrow since you are staying here. Wandless and wordless magic can make you tired at first, so you likely won't feel like going back to your dorm." Severus explains.

"Alright, I'll come back. Dobby can get anything I may need if I stay here. I'm going to head to dinner before my friends start looking for me. I'll see you all later." Harry says calmly. He is happy that Severus has provided a solution.


	25. Chapter 25

This chapter is in honor of Alan Rickman's birthday today :) Lots of Severus in this, which is why I waited with posting it until today :)

Anything underlined is a spell said out loud. Yes, some of the spells I use are made up. They are actually latin translations of phrases/words that relate to what they are trying to do. If there are any spells you'd like Harry to learn, let me know and if I can't find the incantation for it I will create one :) I'm planning on having him get creative with spells that most students don't learn!

Chapter 25

After dinner Harry makes his way back to Sirius' quarters. He stops in his room to change but doesn't get any of his things for the night or the next day, knowing he can just have Dobby get what he needs. He knows Severus, Sirius and Remus are all still in the Great Hall so he sprawls down on the couch to wait. He must be more tired than he thought he was, because he starts to doze off.

When Severus comes into the living room through the floo, he sees Harry asleep on the couch and smiles. Sirius and Remus walk through the door and stop when Severus puts up his hand. They all smile at Harry. "Do you want to wake him up Severus or just do lessons tomorrow?" Sirius asks.

"No, it's important we do at least the detection lesson tonight. I have delivered the potion to the headmaster so he has to learn them before he eats or drinks anything else," Severus replies, before stepping over in front of Harry and pulling out his wand. He aims it Harry and casts a wordless _aguamenti_. As soon as the cold water hits Harry, he wakes up and starts spluttering and squirming to get out of the stream of water. When the water finally stops he looks up scowling, expecting to see Sirius. When he sees Severus standing there with a smirk, his mouth drops open.

"What? Don't think I can play a prank just because I usually don't?" Severus asks with a fake insulted tone in his voice.

"No, no that's not it. I was just expecting it from Sirius. I guess I'm not safe from any of you! Why did you wake me up? I was really enjoying that nap," Harry says with a scowl. His scowl deepens when he sees Sirius and Remus trying to control their laughter.

"Because we need to do the detection spells. The headmaster has the potion, so I want to teach them as soon as possible. Do you have your wand?"

"Uhhm yeah it's here somewhere," Harry says while patting his hands down his side and his pockets. Not finding his wand, he then turns to the couch followed by the floor around the couch. "I know I had it here somewhere," he says, starting to get flustered. Severus has reminded him numerous times to keep his wand on him at all times even when in their quarters. While Harry usually carries it in his holster on his wrist, he doesn't always wear the holster when in their private rooms.

"Harry, where is your wand?" Severus asks after seeing that Harry is not finding it.

"I thought I had it in my pocket but I can't find it!" Harry says, starting to panic.

"Okay, let's retrace your steps. When did you last use it?" Severus calmly replies.

"In my room after dinner. I accio'd my shoes that were under the bed. My room! It's in my room! I went to go change and took off my holster before changing shirts and I must have left it on my bed!" Harry says, realizing suddenly what must have happened. He turns around to run out of the room and go get his wand when he's stopped by Severus.

"Hold it. You are not going to wander around the castle by yourself without anything to protect you. Sirius, can you go with him?"

"Yes, I'll go. Let's go Harry. This shouldn't take long." Sirius says, standing up from where he had sat down. He turns Harry by the shoulders in the direction of the door and they start walking away. However, before Harry makes it to the door Severus has sent several stinging hexes to his backside, and Harry yelps loudly before turning around in indignation.

"What was that for?"

"Consider it punishment for forgetting your wand again. Also, it's to prove how easily someone can hex you when you don't have a wand to protect yourself. Now go get your wand, and maybe next time I send a stinging hex to your backside you'll be able to protect yourself." Severus replies with a stern look.

Harry scowls and walks out after Sirius while rubbing his behind. _That really hurt! My backside feels like it did after Sirius' spanking, and he only sent two hexes! I really need to keep my wand on me to avoid any more of those. And he really has a good point that I need to have my wand on me. _

When Harry and Sirius return, Sirius and Remus leave their quarters to go grade papers in the common room. Severus guides Harry over to the kitchen table and tells him to sit down. Harry scowls, knowing that sitting on the wooden chairs won't feel great, but sits down gently anyway. The sting in his backside isn't as bad as he thought it was, and after a bit of squirming he finds a comfortable position. Several plates of food have appeared on the table and he looks up at Severus to wait for instruction.

"Alright, The incantation is Salutem Cibum. You say it while pointing at the food, and the food will glow either red, green or gold. If it's red, cast a containment spell around the food immediately and step away. It means the food or drink is poisoned. If it's green, it's safe to eat or drink. If it's gold there is something in it, but it's not a poison. With the headmaster this is what you should be worried about. You should never drink or eat anything that's red or gold. You will want to cast the detection spell on your plate, cup and silverware first. Once you've added food on your plate or a drink in your cup, you cast the detection again. This is to test the food. Sometimes there are poisons that don't become a poison until all components are put together, which is why you double cast. Go ahead and cast on that plate in front of you." Severus explains.

Harry points his wand at the plate and softly says "Salutem Cibum." The plate glows green.

"Well done Harry! Go ahead and cast it on several of the other plates, just to get the hang of it a bit more." Severus says, smiling proudly. He is silently impressed Harry got the spell right the first time. After Harry casts on several more plates and cups (some of which glow gold).

"Alright Harry, next I'm going to teach you how to cast it and get your wand to glow instead of your food. This is useful if you want to be a little bit more circumspect in your casting. The incantation for this is Salutem Cibum in Vigra. Go ahead and try that."

Harry tries several more times, and this time his wand is glowing instead of the food.

Severus banishes all the plates and cups before speaking again. "Alright, now I'm going to bring in new plates and cups. At least one of these is poisoned, so I'm going to teach you the containment spell first. The incantation is continentiam. When you cast it, you will move your wand around the are you want contained, and you will see what looks like a bubble surround it. After you do this, you will step away and send for help. Tomorrow we will be teaching you how to send a message with a patronus so that would be the quickest way to get help. Go ahead and try the containment spell on this salt shaker for now."

Harry tries several times before he gets the hang of how to move his wand to get the bubble to go around the object. When Severus feels that he knows what he's doing, he summons the food and drinks. "Alright Harry, go ahead and cast your detections. You know what to do."

Harry casts several, and they all come back green and gold. The fifth cup he casts on suddenly glows red and Harry jumps a little in shock. He points his wand and shouts "Continentiam!", circling the cup and stepping away. He's breathing heavily.

"Well done Harry. In case you are worried, that cup is not actually poisoned. It's a potion I created to mimic a poison to use in classes on poison detection. You did very well! Now, have you done any wandless magic?"

"No I haven't. But then again I've never really tried either. Can we try? And if we do, will my hand glow instead of my wand?"

"Yes, we'll try that next. And yes, your hand would glow instead of your wand. Now, we'll first start by trying to summon something small, like a quill," Severus says while banishing everything from the table and putting a quill down. "Go ahead and put your wand in the holster, and try to summon that quill by just aiming your hand as if you were still holding a wand. You have to focus your magical energy through your arm just like you do when you direct a spell. Keep in mind that it's difficult, especially at first, and not everyone can do it so it might take several tries."

Harry does as instructed, and after about fifteen minutes of trying he finally succeeds. He holds up the quill and grins at Severus. "I did it!"

"Yes you did. Now put it back down and try again. Once you succeed at that, go stand in the other room and try to summon the same quill from further away. Once you succeed at that, we'll try a more difficult spell."

Harry continues practicing, and even manages to summon some heavier objects. He is noticing that he is getting tired, and he walks back into the kitchen and plops down on the chair. "Are you getting tired?" Severus asks, looking concerned.

"A little bit. It's exhausting to cast wandless but so much fun!"

"Yes it certainly can be. I think we should call it quits for today and we'll work our way up to the containment and detection spells tomorrow."

"No! I want to keep trying. Please?" Harry asks pleadingly.

"Are you sure? We don't want to exhaust you so if you are getting tired we should wait," Severus says.

"I'm sure. I promise I'll let you know if I feel too tired. Can we try the detection spells now?"

"Yes," Severus says while conjuring a plate and a cup. "Go ahead and try it wandless."

Harry tries, and it takes him several tries but he succeeds. Once he gets the hang of it, he keeps trying and casts the detection charm on several other things just to make sure. He's smiling and is excited that he can do the charms and do them wandless, but Severus can tell it's a tired smile. "Harry, I can tell you are getting tired. Go get ready for bed, and then you can come back to the living room and we'll have some hot chocolate before you go to bed."

"Alright Severus. I guess I am tired. Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry what can Dobby do for you?"

"Can you get my pajamas and a set of everyday robes for tomorrow from my room?"

"Yes Master Harry. Dobby will put them on your bed here," Dobby says before popping away.

Harry sees Severus scowling. "Didn't I tell you to bring what you needed?"

"You did, but I wasn't sure if I needed it and I figured I can have Dobby get it if I do," Harry says with a shrug.

"Harry, I told you to bring it because I knew you'd need it. I know it's nice to have an elf, but you need to continue doing things yourself as well and not become lazy. I'll let it go this time but next time I tell you to do something, I expect you to do it. If you don't understand why I'm telling you, ask for an explanation in a respectful way. Understood?"

"Yes Severus. I'm sorry." Harry leaves the kitchen and goes to his room to get ready for bed. Severus heads out to the common room to see if Sirius and Remus want to join them for hot chocolate. He tells them of Harry's success and they are both excited for Harry.

While they are all sitting in the living room sipping hot chocolate, Harry suddenly remembers his discussion with Ella. "Have you guys ever heard of Parselmagic?"

All three adults look thoughtful before shaking their heads. "Ella explained it to me. Apparently some magic can be done in parseltongue. She said there isn't much known about it, but it would make my spells stronger and would also ensure that it can't be undone except in parseltongue. It doesn't work for all magic, but she said I'd just have to try it on some things to see if it works," Harry explains.

"That sounds really interesting. I'm not surprised there isn't much literature on it. Once you get the hang of some more spells, and once you are more familiar with wandless and after that wordless magic, we can explore Parselmagic. It might be to your benefit. Wandless and wordless is more important for now, but we'll definitely add Parselmagic to the list." Sirius says with a smile. Remus and Severus are nodding in agreement.

The room falls silent again as they are all deep in thought, sipping hot chocolate and staring at the fire. It's not much later that Severus notices Harry's eyes slowly starting to close, and he decides it's bedtime. "Harry, it's time for you to go to bed. A good night's rest will prepare you for lessons tomorrow."

"yes sir. Goodnight Sirius, Remus, Severus," Harry says sleepily. He walks to his room, and barely remembers getting under the covers before he falls into a deep sleep.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

The following morning Harry goes down to the Great Hall and has breakfast at the Ravenclaw table with Luna. He doesn't see any of his Gryffindor friends yet, but he's assuming they are sleeping a little bit longer like they usually do on Sundays. He starts to pile food on his plate but is stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He looks up to see Sirius standing behind him looking stern.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" he asks.

Harry looks confused for a minute, before realizing what Sirius is talking about. He feels his face start to burn and looks down. "Sorry Sirius. I forgot," Harry says softly.

"Try to remember pup. There is a reason we taught you. Enjoy breakfast, we won't start lessons until after lunch so if you have homework you might want to do it before then."

"Alright Sirius," Harry says while simultaneously casting a wandless detection charm at his plate and cup. He then starts putting food on his plate, and casts the charm again. Luna is simply smiling at him while eating her own breakfast. Once they are both done eating, he decides to get some homework done. "Luna, do you want to join me in the library? I have to do some research for my Potions essay."

"Yes Harry that'd be nice," she replies, continuing to smile. They walk out of the Great Hall, get their books from their rooms and go to the library. They find an empty table surrounded by comfortable chairs in the back of the library.

"Luna, have you ever tried to summon books based on topics before? I read this spell that should allow all the books on the topic you need to come to you, and then the sections in the books that apply to that topic will glow gold."

"No Harry. That sounds interesting," Luna replies.

Harry starts looking through his notes on spells to find the correct one. When he finds it, he takes out his wand and turns towards the bookshelves. "Praestitutis Libris Veritaserum potion," Harry says quietly. It takes a few seconds, but suddenly four books come flying towards their table and stack themselves on top. Luna doesn't even seem faced, and simply smiles while Harry looks excited. "I can't believe that worked! This will make research so much easier!" He points his wand at the first book and says "Portus Speciei Veritaserum potion." He then opens the book and flips to the gold glowing sections, which tell him everything about the potion that the book contains. He smiles, and starts taking notes.

They work on homework for a few hours, and Harry finishes all his work for Monday and Tuesday. He finds that being able to summon books saves him a lot of time, and with the spell Redeunt Ad Originem he sends them back to the shelves when he's done. Harry casts a quick Tempus and realizes it's time for lunch.

"Luna, do you want to head down to the Great Hall for lunch?"

"Sure Harry, that would be lovely." she replies while putting away her books. They walk to the Ravenclaw tower to put away their things, and then head down to the Great Hall. Harry once again sits at the Ravenclaw table since he came there with Luna, and soon they are talking to the others sitting there.

After lunch, Harry heads up to Sirius and Remus' quarters. Sirius and Remus are eating lunch in the kitchen when he walks in, and Harry steals an apple slice from Sirius' plate, grins and sits down with them. Sirius gives him a mock scowl and continues eating.

"What's going on?" Harry asks.

"Eating lunch," Sirius replies sarcastically. This earns him a scowl from Harry.

"What are we doing for lessons?" Harry asks Remus.

"Severus will continue your wandless lessons, and then Sirius will teach you how to send messages through a patronus. If there is time left we will start on wordless spell casting," Remus replies. "But none of that will happen if you don't let us finish eating."

"I'm just excited. When will Severus get here?"

"He will be here when he's done with lunch," Sirius replies. He's barely done talking when they hear the floo flare. Harry jumps up and runs into the living room. Unfortunately for him Severus has made his way to the kitchen and Harry runs right into him. Severus grabs his arms to prevent him from falling over. "Where are you rushing off to?"

"I heard you come in. I'm just excited to start lessons," Harry says.

"Well we will be starting soon. Why don't you go sit in the living room while I talk to Sirius about something," Severus says while turning Harry in the direction of the living room. He then walks into the kitchen, casts a muffling charm at the kitchen door and sits down at the table. Sirius and Remus look at Severus with questioning looks, knowing that the only reason Severus would cast such a charm is if he doesn't want Harry to overhear the conversation.

"How is Harry doing in your classes?"

"He is doing alright. My class is fairly boring and at times I have to remind him to pay attention. His essays are average, but not stellar. He's passing so I haven't felt the need to bring it up," Sirius says.

"He's doing alright in mine. He does great at the practical side, and his homework is average. I feel that he could do better on the homework, but so far he still has an O in the class so I haven't said anything," Remus says.

Severus looks thoughtful. "The reason I'm asking is because it's the same way in my class. He does great on the potions, but always makes a small mistake towards the end so the potion doesn't come out quite right. His essays are average but he could put more thought into them. He's still passing and getting an E, but I feel he could do better. I spoke with Professor Flitwick, and he told me that Harry never succeeds at a charm until the last few minutes of the practical lessons, and his essays are at the same level as prior years. After I explained that I thought Harry was holding back in his classes, he said he feels that Harry could perform the charms much faster but is pretending that he doesn't. Since Harry is taking his schooling more seriously, I feel that his essays should have improved as well compared to prior years."

"If that is the case, then maybe we should talk to Harry about this and see what's going on. He might really be struggling in charms practicals, and he might really be making honest mistakes in potions," Sirius says.

"Do you want to all talk to him together or have one of us talk to him?" Severus asks.

"Why don't we all talk to him together, but not accuse him. Why don't we tell him that we want to be more involved in his classes, and keep a closer watch on his progress. We can check his essays before he hands them in, which will tell us how he's doing on those in all his classes. We can also encourage him to do his best in his practicals, no matter what anyone might say or think. He might get defensive if he feels that we are accusing him of something," Remus says.

They all walk out into the living room and join Harry on the couch. Harry looks up, waiting for them to either start the lesson or tell him what they had been talking about. He had noticed the muffling charm, and knew that whatever they talked about was either about him or something he can't know about.

Sirius decides to start the conversation. "Harry, we have decided that we should take a greater interest in your classes. Your grades are good in all of them, but we feel that we should help you be the best you can be in all your classes. We can't do that if we don't know how you're doing."

Harry simply shrugs. "That's fine. I don't really have a problem in any classes. How do you plan to do that?"

"We'd like to proofread your essays before you hand them in. Also, I will ask all teachers to let me know if they feel you are struggling. We will never give you the answers if something in your essays is wrong, but we will point out the error and you can research the correct answer yourself. This way it's not considered cheating."

"That's fine. I actually would like you to proofread them. Sometimes i'm not sure on what I've written so it would help. I know the theory is just as important as the practicals," Harry says.

"You know you can always ask us if you have questions, right? And I'm sure there are a lot of students who would help you if you asked. Also, we want you to do your best no matter what anyone else might say or think. That means on both your essays and your practicals. Your practicals should be easier for you now, and we want you to be the best you can be and take advantage of that," Sirius says.

Harry looks a little sheepish. "I just don't want people to question why everything is suddenly easier."

"Let them wonder why it's easier. We can always say it's because we've been tutoring you if anyone asks. You shouldn't hold back because you are afraid of questions or afraid of doing better than someone else," Severus says.

"Alright, I won't hold back in my classes. Now can we start lessons?"

Severus almost can't hold back a smile. "Alright impatient brat. Why don't you go get your essays you've completed and when you get back Sirius and Remus can look at them while we continue your wandless lessons." He is barely done talking when Harry is alright jumping up off the couch and starts running out of their quarters. It's only a few minutes later that he comes running back in with a stack of parchment, which he thrusts at Remus.

"I hope you didn't run through the hallways," Severus says, looking sternly at Harry. If Harry had been looking at him, he'd have seen the amusement in his eyes but Harry was re-taking his seat on the couch and not looking at him.

"Uhhh, no?" Harry says looking sheepish.

"Now I hope you're not lying to me?"

"Okay fine, I ran. I want to get started on lessons," Harry says, scowling. He's certain Severus will assign lines, since he always used to take points whenever anyone ran in the hallways.

"Well you're lucky you didn't get caught then. Let's start with these lessons before you explode with impatience," Severus says. Harry looks surprised but knows better than the say anything. Sirius and Remus retreat to the study to read Harry's essays and get some grading done.

"Alright Harry. You already know how to do wandless magic. Let's practice it some more with more spells. The more you practice it, the more you get used to it and the less tired it will make you. Do you remember when we were at Gringotts and Healer Thag explained how you can make your magic stronger by practicing harder magic? This is an example of that. Your magic will get stronger as you practice this, which will make it easier over time."

Harry nods in understanding. "What spells do you want me to try?"

"Let's start with some easier ones, and work our way up. You want to build up the strength, you don't want to start too hard right away because you'll tire easily."

Harry casts a quick expelliarmus at Severus but Severus easily blocks it. "You didn't succeed but that was good. You could see the spell bounce off the shield so that means you were successful in casting it. Try another one."

Harry starts summoning different items around the room. He starts with small items, and then slowly starts summoning bigger items. Once he has summoned them, he banishes them back to where they came from. Then he casts Wingardium Leviosa on a glass of water and levitates it over to the study and has it float in front of Sirius until he picks it up out of the air with a smile. Harry just grins back. He sees Severus cast something at him, and quickly throws up a wandless protego.

"Nicely done Harry! Work on your protego a little bit more, I cast that hex weakly. I think with some practice you can get your shield much stronger. The work on Harry's shield for the next hour, and finally Severus is satisfied with the strength.

"Now keep in mind you should not do anything wandless where others can see. It is not common, especially for fourth years. However, it's a good skill to have in case you truly need it. Plus, by learning it this early on you can keep strengthening it which will help you in later years. Understood?"

"Yes, I understand. I won't use it except to practice in private and in case of emergency. I don't want to give away my power. So what about wordless casting?"

"We will do that later, but first I think it's time for tea and after that Sirius will teach you a talking patronus. Sirius, Remus, do you want to join us for tea?"

Sirius and Remus both come out into the living room. Sirius is carrying the stack of Harry's essays. "Here you go Harry, we've made some notes on some of these but overall they are well done. After the patronus you can make corrections before we do wordless magic. I can see that you are getting a little bit tired after all that wandless magic, and wordless magic will also tire you out."

"Thank you Sirius," Harry says while glancing over the essays. He sees that there are only a handful of corrections. He calls for Dobby and soon they are all drinking tea and eating biscuits and small sandwiches. Nobody is really talking, they are simply enjoying the break from work and lessons.

When Harry is done with his tea and biscuits, he puts his feet up on the couch and looks with a questioning look at Severus, who had taken a seat next to him. Severus nods at him and lifts up his arm, and Harry leans into his side. Severus puts his arm around Harry's shoulder. It doesn't take long for Harry to fall asleep, and Severus smiles when he sees this. "I guess lessons wore him out." Severus summons his grading, and sets to grading essays with his right hand while keeping his left around Harry.

"When he wakes, have him correct his essays first and then I'll teach him the patronus. I'll go back to grading until then," Sirius says. Sirius walks back into the study to continue grading while Remus, who has finished grading, summons a book and settles into his chair to read.

When it is time for dinner two hours later, Severus quietly wakes up Harry. Harry looks around in a daze, before realizing he had fallen asleep. "Sorry Severus, I didn't mean to fall asleep on you."

"It's alright Harry, I got some grading done. You looked tired so I wanted to let you sleep. However, it is time for dinner. Do you want to go down to the Great Hall or eat here?"

"Can I just eat here? I don't really feel like going down tonight."

"That's fine. Go see if Sirius and Remus want to eat here as well and then you can order dinner for all of us from Dobby."

Harry walks into the study, and then calls for Dobby to order dinner for all of them. He walks into the kitchen, where Severus has already taken a seat at the table, and sits down.

"Did you wash up?" Severus asks.

Harry scowls slightly, gets up and walks to the bathroom to wash up. When he returns, he gives Severus a scowl before sitting down again. Sirius and Remus take a seat as well and food appears on the table. Severus casts detection charms over everything, and they all start putting food on their plates. Harry is feeling sleepy throughout dinner, and when Sirius tells him to do his essays he glares at him. He's not feeling up to doing much of anything, but obeys Sirius and walks to his room to correct his essays. It takes him about an hour, and when he's done he walks to the study in search of Sirius.

"I'm done. Can we do the patronus now?" Harry asks. He can hear the slight attitude in his voice but decides to ignore it.

"Not with that attitude you can't. I know you are tired, but please lose the attitude," Sirius replies.

"Sorry Sirius. I really want to learn how to do a talking patronus, but I also want to just lay down on the couch and read a book or something. I feel like I'm always doing something and don't have time to just relax," Harry says with a sigh.

Sirius looks thoughtful at Harry. "I completely understand pup. You have been very busy with school and lessons, and this summer you also had a lot of lessons. Why don't you just relax the rest of the evening and we'll do the patronus in a different lesson? We need to make sure you have enough downtime. We want you to learn a lot, but you need time for yourself as well. Especially without Quidditch this year."

"Are you sure? I don't mind…" Harry says.

"Yes Harry, I'm sure. Go do something relaxing. You are welcome to stay here and relax, or you may go find your friends and do something," Sirius says smiling.

"Thank you Sirius. I think I'm going to stay here and read a bit. I need something nice and quiet." Harry walks back to his room to grab the book he had been reading before walking back to the living room and laying down on some pillows in front of the fire.

Remus had been out in the common area, and walks into the living room a half hour after curfew. He sees Harry asleep in front of the fire and smiles. He slowly picks him up and carries him to bed. He tucks him in, turns off the lights and walks to the study. Sirius is asleep with his head on his desk. Remus smiles and realizes Sirius must have been asleep for a while to have missed curfew for Harry. He softly wakes him up.

"Sirius, wake up." Sirius wakes up and looks up at Remus, then looks around for a clock. "It's nine thirty. Filius came to me in the common room to ask if I knew where Harry was because he as missing at curfew. I told him I hadn't seen him leave our quarters, but if he wasn't here I'd let him know. I found Harry asleep in front of the fire and tucked him into bed. It looks like you were both tired and fell asleep and missed curfew," Remus says with a smile.

"We must have. I remember finishing my grading but not much after that. Harry wanted a calm evening so we didn't do the patronus and he went to go read. If Harry is already in bed, lets head that way ourselves. I'm apparently more tired than I thought," Sirius replies, still partially asleep.

Sirius goes and checks on Harry before going to bed himself. They all need their rest for the start of another week.


	27. Chapter 27

I know very short chapter, but it was a good cut off point! Next chapter will be arrival of the schools and start of the tournament :)

Chapter 27

Monday morning finds Harry waking up, feeling like he's been run over by a truck. He groans and rolls over, curling up underneath the covers. He dismisses the alarm charm and tries to go back to sleep.

When Sirius and Remus notice that Harry isn't getting up, Sirius goes to check on him. Walking into Harry's room he sees him asleep in bed, his face flushed. He walks over to Harry and tries to wake him up. All he's getting in response is a groan. He can feel the warmth radiating from Harry and is concerned. "Remus!"

Remus walks in, hearing the slight panic in Sirius' voice. "I think he's sick. What do we do?"

Remus, staying much calmer than Sirius, replies "I will floo call Madame Pomfrey. She can check him out." Remus walks to the living room, makes the floo call, and then steps back to let Madame Pomfrey into their quarters. She bustles into the bedroom and shoos Sirius out of the way. She removes the covers and runs a diagnostic scan. When the scan is done, she stands up and turns to Sirius and Remus.

"It's nothing major. It looks like it's just the flu. He is running a high fever at the moment. I will give him a fever reducing potion, and I will leave you with several vials in case he needs it again. He can have it every six hours. I will also leave you some anti nausea potion. He will likely need it once he wakes up. I'm assuming you want to take care of him here instead of the hospital wing?" She asks, reading both men correctly.

Sirius nods. "Yes, I will take care of him. My students can read and work on an extra assignment during my class, I just need to let the headmaster know I won't be teaching today. I will also inform his Head of House."

"Very well. If you need anything, I'm a floo call away. Once he wakes up he'll need lots of fluids, and once he feels up to it he can have some food but he likely won't want any in the near future." Madame Pomfrey says while placing the vials of potions on Harry's night stand and walking out of the room.

Sirius floo calls the headmaster and informs him that his students will either need a substitute or assigned a study hall during his class. He then floo calls Filius and informs him of Harry's illness. Filius tells him he will make sure Harry gets all his assignments and that he will check on him after his classes that day. Soon Remus leaves for his classes, but not before telling Sirius to send a patronus if he needs anything. He can tell that Sirius is worried about Harry, which is not surprising since it's the first time Harry's been sick.

Harry sleeps the rest of the day. Professor Flitwick comes to check on him in the afternoon, and drops off Harry's assignments for the day. He tells Sirius that all Harry's professors have been informed of Harry's illness and have said that Harry can take his time making up the assignments once he gets better. Just after dinner Severus floos into the quarters to check on Harry. He tells Sirius, who hasn't left Harry's side all day, to go eat something and rest for a bit and he'll stay with Harry. Reluctantly Sirius leaves after getting a promise from Severus to send a patronus if something happens.

Harry ends up being sick for most of the week. Madame Pomfrey checks on him once a day, and has declared his case of the flu to be a severe one. In order to ensure Harry doesn't get dehydrated or malnourished, he is given nutrient potions three times a day. By the end of the week he is feeling well enough to get out of bed, but Sirius is being overprotective.

"Sirius, please? I've been in bed all week. I feel fine, I can go to the living room at least and sit by the fire." Harry pleads.

"I'm not sure Harry. I don't want you to relapse. I think you should stay in bed and maybe tomorrow we can see about you getting up." Sirius says.

"You're being ridiculous. I've been sick before and I've never had to stay in bed this long. I'm bored and I need a change of scenery. The living room is not that far and the couch comfortable."

"Harry, you've never had to stay in bed because you've never had people to take care of you. When Remus gets back from classes we'll see about you going to the living room. Right now I think you need to get some more rest."

Harry huffs but lays back down. It doesn't take long for him to be asleep. The next day Harry feels almost normal again, and he talks Sirius into letting him stay out in the living room all day.

On Sunday Sirius has to catch up on his grading, and while he's in the study with the door closed, Severus decides that Harry is healthy enough for a short lesson.

"Harry, are you ready to finally learn that patronus?"

"You mean you'll actually let me move and use magic?" Harry replies sarcastically.

Severus grins. "Yes, I'm not a mother hen who believes you are weak beyond recovery. Yes, you were very ill for a bit, but you have recovered almost completely and learning one spell won't hurt that. Just don't try it wandless yet, you can practice that at a later time. Now the way you perform the spell is the same as with a normal patronus, however the incantation is slightly different. The incantation for a talking patronus is Expecto Patronum Nuntius. Your patronus will appear but stay with you. You will then start with saying the name of the person you want it to go to, then say the message. When you are done speaking, the patronus will go to the person it's intended for and repeat the message. Does that all make sense?"

"Yes it does. Can I try it?" Upon Severus' nod, Harry conjures his patronus. "Remus, I finally learned the talking patronus charm!" He watched his patronus take off through the study door where Remus is working with Sirius. A few seconds later a worried Sirius comes bursting through the door.

"Harry! You shouldn't be doing difficult spells yet! We don't want you to have a relapse!"

Severus and Harry trade an exasperated glance. "Harry is fine Sirius, stop acting like a mother hen. He had the flu, not magical exhaustion. He no longer has the flu so doing magic won't affect anything. Harry will be going back to classes in the morning where he will also be doing magic," Severus says.

Sirius looks like he wants to argue, but decides against it. "Just promise you'll take it easy if you feel tired or ill?"

"I will Sirius, I promise." Harry replies.

Sirius nods in acceptance and disappears back into the study. Harry shrugs his shoulders and plops down on the couch. Severus sits down on the couch next to him. "Anything you want to talk about Harry?"

"Not really. I've enjoyed the peace and quiet here but I'm ready to get back to my friends."

"They've all been asking about you. Remus said they come and ask if they can see you every day, but we didn't want them to get the flu as well so they couldn't. I'm sure they'll be glad to see you."

Harry smiles. "When do the other schools get here for the tournament?"

"Next weekend. The Tournament will officially start on Saturday, and then a week later the champions will be chosen. Traditionally the champions were chosen on Halloween, but they made it a little bit earlier this year to give the champions more time between tasks."

"I'm excited for the other schools to get here. It will be nice to see wizards and witches from other countries and maybe get to know some of them. Plus it will be exciting to watch all the tasks!"

Severus smiles. "Yes, it will be exciting. Keep in mind though that you don't know these people and not all of them are trustworthy. I want you to be very careful around them and never meet any of them alone, alright?"

Harry looks at Severus and sees his serious expression. "I promise. Want to play some chess or do you have work to do?"

"I'm done with my grading. I'll play chess with you."

Harry and Severus settle down to a game of chess, which soon turns into several games all of which are own by Severus. When it is time for dinner, Harry convinces everyone he is alright to eat in the Great Hall.

As soon as Harry walks into the Great Hall he is greeted by people telling him they're glad he's back from each table he walks past. Hermione pulls him into a hug when he reaches the Gryffindor table and urges him to sit down. Harry sits down, casts detection charms and starts eating while talking excitedly with his friends to find out what he's missed all week. It turns out nothing excited had happened, so all in all he didn't miss much. Harry tells them the schools will be arriving in a week, and soon conversation turns to the tournament.


	28. Chapter 28

AN: I'm not going to write broken English, just assume that the Durmstrang and Beauxbaton students do not speak fluent English. I get annoyed reading broken English at times, so decided not to write it. I know it's another shorter chapter, but I'm going to re-write what was the rest of the chapter and wanted to post something for you all now. The rest of the chapter will now be Chapter 29, hopefully posted by the weekend :)

Chapter 28

The next week seems to fly by for Harry. He is busy with classes, homework and extra lessons. The evening before the schools are set to arrive, he is in the shared common room with his friends, talking about the other schools. Everyone is looking forward to their arrival. They've all heard that the arrival is usually a spectacle and they look forward to it. Rumour has it that Viktor Krum will be arriving with Durmstrang. Ron hasn't stopped talking about him, while Harry doesn't know much more than that he is the seeker for the Bulgarian team. Off course, if it's true Harry would love to go flying with him.

Harry's sleep is restless that night. He has a weird feeling of foreboding about the arrival of the other schools, and he has several nightmares. He wakes up exhausted in the morning, which does not go unnoticed by his guardians. After breakfast he is cornered by Sirius and Remus in the hallway before he can get to his first class.

"Are you alright Harry?" Sirius asks in concern.

"I'm fine, just didn't sleep well. I'm not sure why but I could not get to sleep last night," Harry answers.

"You're sure nothing is wrong?"

"I'm positive. I need to get to class," Harry says before walking away.

"He's hiding something," Remus says to Sirius. Sirius nods before they separate ways to get to their own classes.

At lunch there is excited chattering all around the Great Hall. Harry is sitting with Luna at the Ravenclaw table and they are all speculating about how they think the schools will arrive. They are set to arrive right after lunch, and before long the Headmaster asks everyone to go out to the courtyard to wait for their guests. Harry and Luna join Hermione, Neville, Fred and George. They see Ron walking up ahead with Dean and Seamus.

When they get to the courtyard, everyone is already looking around to see if they can spot the arrival. Suddenly there's a scream, "Up there!" Everyone looks up, and Harry watches in fascination as a huge carriage appears in the sky. When it lands, a very large woman steps out and the headmaster goes up to greet her. Soon a group of girls come out of the carriage, all dressed in identical blue dresses.

"Is that an all girls school?" Harry whispers to Hermione.

"Yes it is. They are from France," Hermione replies.

Harry just nods, because they are interrupted by a yell "in the water!" Harry looks towards the water to see a huge ship appear out of it. "Now that's impressive," Harry says.

His friends all just nod as they watch Dumbledore walk over to the edge of the lake, where there's now a boat dock connecting the ship to shore. A stern looking man walks down the dock and greets Dumbledore stiffly. He is followed by a group of boys, all dressed in the same brown uniforms and fur caps. "Is Durmstrang an all boys school?" Harry asks.

Hermione looks at him in exasperation. "Yes, Harry it is. Considering they are all boys I'd say it's obvious. Nobody is certain where their school is located because it's hidden but it's somewhere around Bulgaria. They favor the Dark Arts there."

Harry looks shocked at Hermione, and knows that this is why he was warned to not trust the foreign students so easily. They can't get an up close look at any of the students, as they are ordered back inside by the Heads of House. Harry tries to linger to see if Viktor Krum is there, but he is sternly grabbed by his arm and pushed towards the castle by a stern looking Severus.

"Get to class Mr. Potter, unless you wish to find yourself in detention this evening by disobeying the order to get back inside and to class?"

Harry glares at Severus. "I'm going," he snaps while pulling his arm free. The next moment he feels a sharp smack land on his backside, and he looks around quickly to make sure nobody has seen. He notices they are the last ones to make their way back inside, and the foreign students are all clustered around Dumbledore who appears to be giving instructions.

"What was that for?" Harry asks indignantly. The smack didn't hurt, but he still didn't want anyone to see him get a smack.

"Your attitude. Drop it. Sirius informed me you didn't sleep well, but you will not take that tone with me. Now I believe you have class to attend before dinner so I recommend you get to it before you get assigned lines for being late."

"But I have potions."

"And I've heard the potions professor takes 10 points when a student is late so unless you wish to spend the evening writing 100 lines, you'd better hurry and get there before he does."

Harry scowls at Severus before hurrying ahead to get to class. When he gets there he takes a seat beside Hermione and whispers. "I wonder what they are doing while we're all in class."

"I imagine Dumbledore is showing them the school and the classrooms where they'll have lessons. They will be formally introduced to us at the Welcome Feast tonight," she whispers back. They both fall silent when Professor Snape stalks into the classroom, and soon they are focused on brewing their potion. Harry notices that the professor avoids him during class, but he decides that's probably for the best. He isn't sure why, but he has been on the verge of losing his temper all day. He assumes it's probably from the lack of sleep.

When Ron, Harry and Hermione get to the Great Hall they find a seat at the Gryffindor table. Harry notices that the House tables are longer than normal, and he assumes that's so the other schools can choose where to sit. It doesn't take long for everyone to find their seat, and for Dumbledore to stand up.

"Welcome students. Tonight marks the official start of the Triwizard Tournament! You might have noticed the unfamiliar faces at the Head Table. I'd like to introduce Ludo Bagman and Cornelius Fudge, both judges in the Tournament. However, before we can officially start, let's introduce the guest schools! First, the lovely ladies from Beauxbaton Academy, led by Headmistress Madame Maxime."

Everyone claps politely, and when they all walk into the Great Hall many of the boys start to swoon. Harry looks confused, not understanding why until Hermione leans over and explains. "There are several half-veela's in that group. I would bet Madame Maxime is at least half giant like Hagrid." Harry just nods, having come to that conclusion when he saw her earlier. The girls all take a seat at the end of the Ravenclaw table.

"Next, we have the gentlemen from Durmstrang, led by their Headmaster Igor Karkaroff!"

They watch the boys make their way down the aisle, and before Harry can says anything Ron is already bouncing in excitement along with many other students. "That's Viktor Krum! I can't believe he's here!" he hears Ron say. The Durmstrang students all sit at the Slytherin table, and nobody seems surprised by that. "Go figure," Dean mutters.

"Welcome to all of our guests. We hope that you will feel welcomed and at home here at Hogwarts. Let us all eat before we officially start the Tournament," Dumbledore says before clapping his hand and food appearing on the tables.

Soon the only thing heard in the Great Hall is soft conversations and the sounds of people eating. Harry is lost in thought, thinking about the addition of all the new students. He wonders if he should be pro-active in meeting the other schools, just like he was pro-active in sitting at the other tables and meeting new students. When dessert appears on the tables, Harry has made up his mind and he moves over to the Slytherin table where he's noticed there's space at the end of the table by the Durmstrang students, diagonally across from Viktor Krum. He knows he's taking a big risk choosing the Slytherin table over the Ravenclaw table, but he figures in for a penny in for a pound.

He feels all eyes on him as he makes his way across the hall, and he knows that everyone is waiting to see what he's doing. He stops by the empty seat. "Is it alright if I sit here?" he asks.

"You are not in Slytherin," one of the Durmstrang students says.

"I was actually sorted into all four houses, so I'm allowed to sit at all four tables. I thought it would be nice to come meet you all," Harry says nicely.

"You are Harry Potter," he hears Viktor Krum say.

"And you are Viktor Krum. I don't see why that is important to me sitting here?"

Viktor chuckles, before gesturing for Harry to sit down. "So what is your first impression of Hogwarts?" he asks Viktor.

"It's big. Durmstrang is much smaller. I saw your Quidditch pitch, it looks nice."

"It is, but Quidditch was cancelled this year because of the Tournament," Harry says, sounding sad. "We still occasionally go flying but it's not the same."

"I've heard you are a great seeker," Viktor says, looking straight at Harry.

Harry flushes red. "Compared to you I'm probably not any good."

Viktor smiles. "Why don't we test that theory sometime? It will be nice to fly, I'll miss it if we don't."

Harry looks shocked at the fact that Viktor wants to fly with him. He instantly becomes nervous at the thought of an international Quidditch star being interested in that. He finally manages a reply. "Sure, I'd love that."

"You are so normal. We expected you to be caught up in your fame," another Durmstrang boy says.

Harry looks surprised. "I'm just Harry. What's your name?"

"Nickolas. But you're not just Harry. You're Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived."

"Nickolas, I'm just Harry. Yes, my name is Harry Potter and yes they've nicknamed me The Boy Who Lived, but in reality I'm just Harry. I don't care for the fame." Harry says before grabbing a piece of treacle tart, casting detection charms and taking a bite.

The others watch him cast his charms wandlessly and wordlessly in amazement before turning to their own dessert.

"That was impressive Harry. You are only fourteen, yes?"

"Yes I am. Being famous has made it a requirement I learn those charms," Harry shrugs.

Viktor nods in understanding while casting his own charms. "That's not what I meant. You did it wandless and wordless."

Harry looks puzzled before realizing he had. "I guess I've just gotten so used to it."

Noticing that Harry doesn't really want to talk about it, Viktor turns back to his pie, but not before thinking that there's more to Harry than he'll admit to and that Harry is definitely a powerful wizard. Viktor can practically feel the power coming off Harry and he's intrigued, as the Slytherins had been telling them there is nothing special about Harry.

What Harry doesn't know is that Viktor had been excited about meeting The Boy Who Lived. He had heard the stories growing up, and having the chance to meet him he had done some research. He had found out that Harry had recently claimed his four Lordships and had moved into his own home with Sirius Black and Remus Lupin even though he was emancipated. He also found out that Harry was the youngest seeker in a century, and was rumored to be excellent on a broom. Now that he has met Harry, he is shocked at how normal he seems. He expected a famous four time Lord to act more like some of the Slytherins he'd already met, but instead he had just met a normal teenager.

When dessert is over, Dumbledore stands up once more and all attention is directed back at him. "I hope you all are full, but before we succumb to exhaustion it is time to start the Tournament! Here before me is the Goblet of Fire. It will be lit, and with that the Tournament will officially be opened. An age line has been drawn around it to prevent anyone under age seventeen from entering. The Goblet will be here for a week, until next Saturday at Eight P.M. we will gather here to draw the Champions. Anyone who wishes to enter the Tournament, should write their name on a piece of parchment and drop it in the Goblet. The Goblet will determine the Champions. Minister Fudge, if you would be so kind as to light the flame!"

They all watch in fascination as the Fudge points his wand at the Goblet, and wordlessly casts a spell that lights a bright flame in the Goblet. Everyone claps in excitement.

"I hereby declare the Triwizard Tournament started!" Dumbledore says before sitting back down.

"Are you sad you can't compete Harry?" Viktor asks.

"Absolutely not. I wouldn't enter even if I was old enough. I have no desire to be in the Tournament, and I'm looking forward to watching all the tasks. It will be nice to have a quiet year at Hogwarts for once."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You mean you haven't heard the stories? It seems like everyone I've ever met has heard at least some of them."

"No I haven't. Everyone is leaving the Great Hall, is there a common area with comfortable seats we can go and talk?"

"Yeah, we have an all-house common room. We can go there." Harry smiles. He glances up at Sirius, Remus and Severus who all look in interest as Harry is calmly walking out of the Great Hall with none other than Viktor Krum.

"Is there anyone who doesn't like that boy?" Severus asks in astonishment. "He was at that table less than half an hour, and now they are leaving as if they've known each other for years."

"They are both famous, they probably bonded over that. And I know plenty of people who don't like Harry, unfortunately, but he has a way to shock those who don't know him." Sirius replies. "Come on, I bet they are headed for the common room. We can go 'supervise' and see what's going on."

Meanwhile Harry and Viktor, along with a handful of Durmstrang students have made it to the common room and they look around in interest. Harry notices his friends by one of the fires, but there's not enough space for all of them so he picks a fire that nobody is sitting at and plops down in a chair.

"This is a nice room Harry," Viktor says, sitting down on the couch.

"Yes it is. I came up with the idea at the beginning of the year to promote house unity, and the headmaster agreed. It's a popular place to hang out."

"So tell me about your years at Hogwarts. It can't have been that bad? You've only had three years."

Harry laughs. "Well, my first year there was a cursed broom, a Mountain Troll, a Dragon and Voldemort. (Everyone flinches when Harry says the name). Second year there was a deranged house elf, a possessed diary, a Basilisk, and oh yeah, Voldemort. Third year was fairly quiet, I only had an escaped mass murderer after me who turned out to be my godfather and to be innocent."

Viktor's mouth has dropped open. "You're joking right?"

"No, I'm serious. Look, I'm not really keen on explaining it all in detail but I can promise you I'm not joking. It's why I want a quiet year and not be in the Tournament."

"I understand. So you've defeated Voldemort three times already and you're barely fourteen?"

Harry just nods.

"That's impressive. It's still early, want to go fly?"

"I can't. It's dark outside and my guardians would be furious if I went outside without one of them."

"But they aren't here so they'll never know."

Harry looks surprised. "You didn't see Sirius Black sitting at the Head Table? I guess not. Sirius is the History of Magic professor here and Remus Lupin is the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. On top of that Potions Master Severus Snape will take great delight in assigning detention if he catches me outside. Trust me, the moment I step outside the castle door, someone will know."

"That's just tough luck. Both guardians at school? Well how about we go flying in the morning, say right after breakfast?"

"Sure, but you're not worried half the school will show up?"

"Let's not tell people, that way we can fly without being interrupted," Viktor suggest.

"Alright. I'll bring a handful of friends but they won't tell anyone and they won't be flying anyway. I'm going to head up to my room, I'm exhausted. I'll see you in the morning."

They all say goodnight, before Harry leaves. When he gets to his room, he quickly writes notes for Hermione, Neville and Luna and asks them to meet him in the Entrance Hall right after breakfast and not tell anyone. He has Dobby discreetly deliver the notes, which turn to ash after being read.

When he's changed for bed, he walks out of his bathroom only to find Sirius sitting in the middle of his bed. "Hi Sirius, what are you doing here?"

"What, I can't come visit?" he replies looking affronted. Harry just gives him a look and Sirius grins. "I want to know what you and Viktor Krum talked about."

"I had a feeling you'd say that," Harry says while sitting down on his bed. "We just talked about the Tournament and Quidditch, and he wanted to know more about me. We're going to fly tomorrow morning."

"Make sure you take someone with you," Sirius says.

Harry looks at Sirius like he's crazy. "I'm not stupid Sirius, off course I'm taking people with me."

"I'm not trying to insult your intelligence, just being protective which is allowed. I'll leave you alone so you can get a good night's sleep. Severus said you had an attitude with him earlier."

Harry just shrugs. "I was tired. I'm glad he left me alone during class."

"Yeah he said he did that on purpose. He really didn't want to give you detention but knew if you had put up an attitude in front of others he'd have no choice. Also, he asked me to tell you that if you have more sleepless nights to let one of us know so we can get you a potion to help you sleep."

"Alright Sirius. Goodnight."

Sirius pulls the blankets higher over Harry before ruffling his hair and turning off the lights. "Goodnight Harry."

The next morning Harry arrives at breakfast at the same time as Hermione, Neville and Luna and they all sit at the Gryffindor table. It's still fairly early and the Great Hall is mostly empty. He quickly tells his friends why he wanted them to meet him and they are all excited to go watch him fly. Soon Viktor shows up with some of his friends, and they join them at the Gryffindor table, quickly eating. Everyone is ready to go outside and enjoy the nice weather they appear to be having.

On the way to the Quidditch pitch Harry carries on conversation with Viktor, all their friends a little behind them, but he is getting increasingly more nervous.

"Relax Harry, you don't have to be nervous. I'm not going to judge you on your flying."

Harry just nods, but it does help a little bit with his nerves. As soon as he mounts his broom and shoots up into the sky, all his nerves disappear and he feels in his element. Viktor joins him and someone on the ground releases a practice snitch. The play 'catch the snitch' for several hours only catching the snitch twice, once by Harry and once by Viktor. When they land they are both out of breath.

"You are an excellent flyer Harry, don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise. Some of those dives and twists were amazing." Viktor says, grinning. "I'd love to fly more with you, it will keep me in shape for when the season starts again this summer."

Harry is blushing at the compliment. "Thank you. And I'd like that as well."

Harry's friends are smiling proudly at Harry, having seen his flying before but never against an international star. Viktor's friends seem impressed as well. What Harry doesn't know is that Sirius, Remus, Severus, Minerva and Filius had all watched them fly after hearing from Sirius where they were. Sirius, who had only occasionally seen Harry fly is suitably impressed.

"He can really fly can't he? I wish James was here to see this," he says wistfully.

Remus smiles sadly at him. "He's not here in person but I have no doubt he's seeing this. This whole tournament is about international cooperation, and Harry has made international friends within a day. Look at the Durmstrang boys, including Viktor, and then look at how red Harry is from receiving that compliment. They are all amazed by Harry and it would not surprise me if they all became friends this year. They've just learned that while Harry might be a powerful wizard and incredible flyer, he is a very humble and kind boy."

The other Professors nod in agreement before everyone makes their way inside for lunch.


	29. Chapter 29

AN: Sorry it took so long! Chapter contains CP. If you wish to skip, skip past the part where Harry is in trouble with Sirius.

Chapter 29

After lunch Harry walks up to Sirius' quarters. The other night he had woken up from a nightmare about the Dursleys, and it has been bothering him ever since. He knows he never really got closure with any of it. When he walks in he's not surprised to see Sirius, Remus and Severus all there.

"Hey, what are you all doing here?"

"We had a feeling you'd make your way up here at some point plus we were discussing the other schools," Sirius says. "Sit down. What's on your mind?"

Harry takes a seat, but doesn't say anything.

"Harry, are you alright?" Remus asks with a concerned look. When Harry doesn't respond, Sirius and Remus look at each other in concern.

"Harry?" Severus asks, a little louder.

Harry startles slightly. "Sorry, I was thinking. So you know how yesterday I was a little short tempered?" Upon seeing their nods, Harry continues. "I didn't sleep well the night before because I had a nightmare, and when I had woken up from it I just couldn't sleep well. I kept tossing and turning the rest of the night. The nightmare was about the Dursleys. I don't want to go into the details of it, but I think it's because I haven't really had closure. I just left, nothing was said or done. I'm not sure what to do about that."

"Oh Harry, why didn't you say anything?" Sirius says while moving to put an arm around Harry.

"I don't know. I guess I didn't want to bother you with it."

"You wouldn't be bothering us, we want you to be able to tell us. I think I know how to fix this though," Severus says. When they all look at him, he sighs. It seems so obvious. "We have the rest of the afternoon. Why don't we go visit them? Harry can get closure and I can hex them, seems like a win win situation."

Harry laughs. "You can't hex them. If anyone does it will be me. You are welcome to dress in your scariest robes and look intimidating though."

"You mean my dungeon bat appearance?"

"Exactly, that would be perfect. Make sure your robes billow when you walk, it gives an added effect," Harry grins.

"Cheeky brat. So what do you all say? Want to go visit the Dursleys?"

Sirius is looking like a kid in the candy store, and they can see his thoughts going over every possible prank he can play on them. Remus smacks him lightly on the back of the head. "That's a warning not to do anything to permanently harm them, understood? I'm not going to say anything over pranks because they deserve it, but nothing permanent."

Harry jump up from the couch and summons his best robes and cloak. He quickly disappears into his room and comes back out looking every bit the wizard. "I'm ready."

Sirius looks around and grins. "Very nice look Harry. You look like a wealthy wizard."

"Perfect, that's the look I was going for."

Soon they are all ready and leave the castle, heading towards the gates. Severus has disillusioned himself so nobody can see he's with them. Halfway down the grounds they run into Viktor.

"Hi Harry, are you going somewhere? You are all dressed up"

"Yes we are taking a trip this afternoon. We'll be back by dinner."

"Alright, I'll see you then!" Viktor says before continuing in the direction of the forest.

"Should we tell him to be careful in the forest?" Harry asks.

"They've been given the same warning you get every year, and seeing as that hasn't stopped you from sneaking around in there I doubt it would stop him," Sirius says with a grin. Harry has the grace to look sheepish.

"I guess you have a point. And before you say anything, I know if I get caught there now you'll wallop my bum."

"At the very least. You'll likely get grounded or lose your broom as well. You've almost died twice in there so I think it's safe to say you are seriously risking your life if you go there again."

"You'll be happy to know I have no current plans to go into the forest," Harry says cheekily.

"You really are cheeky today. Come on, grab my arm so we can apparate and have some fun."

The land in a dark alley and make their way over to Privet Drive. When they approach Number 4, Harry slows down. "I want to make sure the neighbors see us. The Dursleys are very worried about appearances and we all look like wizards." They all grin and slow down their pace.

When they get to the door Harry knocks and then patiently waits. Petunia opens the door and squeals. "What are you doing here?!"

"Hi Aunt Petunia, I came to visit and I brought some friends. Can we come in? You wouldn't want the neighbors to talk now would you?"

The quickly opens the door further and they all walk in and straight through to the kitchen. Harry sees his cousin in the backyard and Vernon on the couch watching television. As soon as Vernon sees who it is he stalks over to them. "Boy you are not welcome here. Now leave!"

"No, I have something to say first but I think Dudley should come in here," Harry says before opening the door and yelling for Dudley. When Dudley comes in Harry gets a strange feeling from him, but he's not sure why. He shakes it off for now.

"I just came to tell you what I really think. Now that you no longer have any control over my life, I think it needs said. First, let me introduce my friends. Aunt Petunia, I'm sure you remember them. Meet Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Severus Snape."

He hears Petunia gasp in shock, as she clearly hadn't recognized them yet. "You! You were friends with her!"

Vernon looks at her in surprise. "You know these people?"

"He was friends with Lily and those two were James' friends."

"Ah so you're wizards," Vernon says, sounding proud for having figured it out.

"As if that wasn't obvious," Harry says while rolling his eyes. Before he can say anything else he gets another strange wave from Dudley. When he focuses his magic to try and figure it out he gasps. He grabs Severus' arm, which is closest to him. "Excuse me, but I have to ask Severus something in the other room. Petunia, you can get re-acquainted with Sirius and Remus in the meantime."

Severus follows Harry into the living room in confusion. As soon as they get there Harry turns to face him. "I think Dudley is a wizard."

"Excuse me?"

"I got these strange waves when he walked but didn't think anything of it. Then just now I felt them again and I focused my magic. It's very very weak but it's there. Do you think he could have bindings?"

"Harry, what you are implying is very serious. Are you sure?"

"Yes. We need to get Dudley to Gringotts. I remember reading that having all your magic bound like that can be deadly. I think I know of a way to get him there, just follow my lead. Can you signal Sirius and Remus to do the same?" When Severus nods they walk back into the kitchen.

"Sorry about that. Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon. You have always treated me like rubbish even though I didn't do a thing to you. I was a little boy who had just lost both his parents and you treated me like a slave. All I had was Dudley's hand me downs, and even then they were his worst ones. You made me sleep in a cupboard and you frequently locked me up without food. I will never forgive you for how you treated me and I'm still debating whether to curse you or not. However, I have something else I want to do first so you'll be safe from my wrath for now. Also, I want to let you know that I'm filthy rich. As in, I'm richer than the Queen of England. Think on that. If you hadn't treated me the way you had, I would have taken care of you for the rest of your life. As it is, I really don't want to give you anything. Dudley, I do have something for you but you'll have to come to the Wizarding bank Gringotts with us. I know you are just a product of their parenting and if you were raised differently you wouldn't have hated me the way you did. Would you be willing to come with us?"

"Harry, I never hated you. Father threatened to beat me and lock me up like he did with you if I didn't pretend to hate you. Yes, I'll come with you."

Harry, Sirius, Remus and Severus all look at Dudley in shock. Severus recovers first. "Let's go then, I have no intention of staying here any longer than necessary. Sirius, are you done?"

Nobody had noticed Sirius slipping away while Harry was talking. "Yes I am. Let's go."

Soon they are all leaving Number 4 and heading back to the alley. "Dudley, since you aren't a wizard you can only get into wizarding London while touching a wizard. Once you are inside you can see it. Hold on to Severus and he will transport you through something called apparition. We'll meet you there," Harry explains before grabbing hold of Sirius and disappearing.

Dudley looks in shock at where Harry had just been standing before Severus grabs him by the arms and apparates with him. When they land in the main hall of Gringotts he looks around in amazement. Harry leads the group over to the first goblin and requests an urgent meeting with Ragnok.

They only have to wait a few minutes before they are led to Ragnok's office. Upon seeing them enter, Ragnok turns serious.

"Lord Potter-Black, how may I assist you today?"

"LORD Potter-Black? You are a Lord?" Dudley asks in shock.

Harry grins at him. "Yes I am. I'm actually a four-time Lord. I'll explain some other time. Ragnok, I would like my cousin Dudley Dursley here to be checked for magical bindings. I can see magical auras and I can sense his but it's incredibly weak."

"That is very serious Lord Potter-Black. Please follow me and we will see Healer Thag immediately."

Dudley looks confused but follows. When they enter what looks like a doctor's office and are met by another goblin he stops. "Harry, what is going on?"

"Dudley, I had some magical bindings removed over the summer. What bindings do is they limit the magic you can do. I can now sense someone else's magic. I sense very weak magic in you, and I want to have Healer Thag check to see if you have any magical bindings. Dudley, I think you may be a wizard."

"You have to be wrong, I would have noticed!"

"Not if the bindings bind off all your magic. Can Healer Thag give you a potion that will determine if you have any? I might be wrong."

"I guess," Dudley says.

"Very well Mr. Dursley. Please sit on this exam table. Swallow this vial as quickly as you can and lay very still. I will tell you when you can get up."

They all wait as the potion does its job. "Mr. Dursley, you may sit up. I found one magical binding and one compulsion on you. The binding binds all your magic, and the compulsion is directed towards fear and hatred of wizards. Would you like me to remove these?"

Dudley looks at Harry in slight panic. "Dudley, by removing those your magic will be free. We can then see how powerful a wizard you are. You are a wizard Dudley, always have been just like me. I have a suspicion who placed the binding on you, but I won't share that right now. Healer Thag will document it. Binding a wizard's magic is very serious Dudley. If you leave the binding you will die shortly after reaching maturity because your magic will reach maturity but have nowhere to go."

"I don't want to die but I don't know anything about being a wizard!"

"We can help you. Once we get the bindings removed we can figure it all out."

"I don't want to die, so yes, please remove the bindings."

Healer Thag nods before administering the potion to remove the bindings and compulsions. While Dudley is asleep, Harry turns to the other adults and Ragnok. "Ragnok, since I'm emancipated, can I have custody of another wizard?"

"Yes Lord Potter-Black but I don't recommend it. I understand what you are trying to do but may I recommend Mr. Snape? It would give you two another alibi to be seen together, and Dumbledore will likely approve because he'll think Mr. Snape will keep Dudley hating you. As soon as his bindings are removed he will receive a Hogwarts letter."

"Severus?"

Severus looks thoughtful. "I suppose that would work, but wouldn't the Dursleys need to sign over custody?"

"Yes they would. I can draw up the papers and you can take them if you'd like."

"Ragnok, please do so. Thank you," Harry says when he notices Dudley starting to wake up. As soon as Dudley is able to stand up they take him to the empty room Harry used last time.

"Mr. Dursleys, your magic has been bound for a long time so it needs to release itself. Please run through the emotions you are feeling, don't worry if you feel your magic lose control," Healer Thag says before casting a containment shield to protect the rest of them. They watch in interest as Dudley turns angry and releases a flare of magic, turning the walls bright purple.

After a few minutes Healer Thag lowers the containment shield and casts a spell on Dudley. They see a ball in a darker shade of orange appear above Dudley. "His magic is average strength. He likely won't have have any special abilities but he should be able to perform most spells. He is lucky, most wizards who have magic bound for that long have much lower levels."

Before anyone can say anything an owl flies in and drops an envelope in Dudley's hand. He opens it and looks in amazement. "It's a Hogwarts acceptance letter. It says that even though the school year has already started I can still join the first years. Won't I be older than them?"

"Yes, you will be. However, you can't skip two years. You will start in first year classes, and then when you get to second year you will be slowly accelerated. We don't want to accelerate first year because it's so important you really know all those basics. You will be able to join your year, which is one year behind Harry because of the date of your birthday, when they enter their fifth year, which is two years from now," Severus explains.

Ragnok walks back in and hands Harry a roll of parchment. "The guardianship papers Lord Potter-Black."

"Thank you Ragnok. Dudley, with your parents' aversion to magic I had Ragnok prepare guardianship papers to make Severus your guardian. If your parents don't want to let you go to Hogwarts or treat you the way they did me because you're a wizard we can have them sign these papers."

Dudley looks at the imposing Severus. "Why not one of them?"

"Because Severus and I have to appear to be hating each other, which you will have to play along with. Having him as your guardian would give us an excuse if we are seen together. He's not as scary as he looks."

Severus snorts. "Dudley, I won't hurt you. Yes, I'll be a strict guardian and I will have high expectations but I will be fair. You can ask Harry."

"He's right. He's strict and has no problem punishing you when you do wrong, but he will always listen to you and help you in any way he can. Let's head back to Surrey and see what they say."

Before leaving Gringotts, Harry hands a piece of parchment to Ragnok. He doesn't want to say anything yet, but it's an order to open an account for Dudley and deposit 10,000 in it. They arrive back at Number 4 in silence and Dudley looks at his parents in fear.

"Mum, dad I have to tell you something. They did a test on me and it turns out my magic was bound. I'm a wizard."

Vernon turns bright red and Petunia very pale. "You can't be a wizard boy."

"Uncle Vernon, I can assure you that he is. He also received an acceptance letter for Hogwarts, inviting him to attend starting immediately."

"He's not going. NO son of mine is a wizard," Vernon bellows.

"Vernon, see reason. It's duddykins. Wizard or not he's still our son. Harry wasn't ours."

"But he's a wizard. We know nothing about that world."

"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, I can help with that. You can assign a magical guardian who will guide Dudley in the Wizarding world while you maintain legal guardianship of him. This is used when a muggle parent wants their child to have someone who understands the world they are in, but doesn't want to give up guardianship completely," Severus says. "This guardian would guide Dudley in every way."

"Who would be this guardian?" Petunia asks.

"I will be," Severus answers.

Vernon still looks reluctant but they can tell Petunia wants to say yes to this and Vernon looks like he doesn't want to upset Petunia.

"Fine. He can go, but no freakiness in this house!" Vernon says. Dudley looks excited and Harry produces the papers. He quickly spells them to change from guardianship to magical guardianship and hands them to Severus to sign. Once the forms are signed they glow and disappear.

"They are now filed with the Ministry of Magic and the headmaster has been made aware. A copy will be in Dudley's vault, Harry's vault and my vault in Gringotts. Dudley, we need to get to Diagon Alley to get your school supplies. Do you trust Sirius and Remus to pack your belongings here?" Severus asks.

"Yes sir. But I don't have any money for school supplies," Dudley says while looking at his parents.

"Don't worry about it Dudley. I'll get your school supplies this time and we'll figure it out for next year," Harry says. "We need to get going. Sirius and Remus will meet us at Hogwarts so you want to say goodbye since you won't be home until Christmas."

Severus, Remus, Sirius and Harry walk into the hallway to give Dudley privacy. "You don't have to pay for him Harry," Severus says.

"It's alright. Starting at a new school like that and finding out you are a wizard is stressful enough as it is. This is one less worry for him. Sirius, Remus, he'll likely just need clothes. We can get him everything else. I assume we'll meet you in the headmaster's office?"

"Yes, he'll need to be sorted and introduced to the students at dinner so we have to hurry."

Soon Harry, Severus and Dudley arrive back in Diagon Alley. Harry has to drag Dudley along at times to get him moving past something that's distracting him. "Dudley we don't have much time. Next time we're here you can look around all you want."

Soon they have been to Madame Malkin's, who will have Dudley's uniforms ready in an hour. They give the list of books needed to the clerk at Flourish &amp; Botts who will have the books ready for pickup in twenty minutes. The only thing they now need is a wand. Harry grins, knowing that this was his favorite part.

Dudley is slightly scared by Mr. Ollivander but the third wand is the one. He looks in amazement at the sparks that fly out of it. "Wicked!"

Harry grins at Severus, remember his own reaction. "Let's go pick up all your things and head to Hogwarts. We should be right on time for dinner. Severus, Dumbledore knows we are coming, right?"

"Professor Dumbledore Harry, and yes he does."

They pick up all of Dudley's belongings, which Harry shrinks and puts in his pocket. Severus apparates Harry to the gates of Hogwarts before apparating back to get Dudley. Harry slowly makes his way up to the castle, assuming Severus and Dudley will catch up, when he sees Viktor by the forest. He walks over to see what he's doing.

"Hi Viktor. What are you doing out here? It's almost dinner time isn't it?"

"Hi Harry. Look, there's a unicorn. I saw it on my way to dinner and walked over."

Harry walks into the forest a little further, admiring the unicorn. He's never seen one alive, and decides they really are beautiful. He doesn't even realize he's gone several yards into the forest until he hears "Harry James Potter, get your behind over here now!" behind him. He startles, and realizes he's in the forest. He recognized the voice as Severus' and knows he's in trouble.

He walks out and looks sheepish. "I didn't realize I went that far in. I was admiring a unicorn."

"Mr. Krum, please go to dinner," Severus says to Viktor. Viktor recognizes the anger in Severus' voice, looks apologetic at Harry and leaves for the castle. Severus turns back to Harry, grabs him by the arm and lands two hard smacks on his backside. "We have other things to do this moment or you'd be getting a lot more than that young man. Now move, we have to get to dinner," Severus says sternly.

Dudley looks open mouthed at what's happening. He catches up to Harry and whispers "did he just spank you?"

Harry nods. "Yeah, he only does that when I put myself in danger or if I have an attitude with him. Just a warning, he will do the same with you so I advise against it."

"But it's just a forest."

"It's the Forbidden Forest. It's actually quite dangerous in there which is why it's forbidden. You'll find out all the rules soon."

Dudley just nods, trying to take it all in. He looks up at the imposing castle, and in amazement at the moving paintings once they are inside. When they walk into the Great Hall, Severus directs Harry to sit at the Gryffindor table where Hermione is already trying to wave him down. "Go sit down, come to Sirius' quarters after dinner. We still have a little matter to discuss."

"Harry, who is that?" Hermione asks.

"That's my cousin Dudley. His magic had been bound and now it's unbound and he's going to be a student here. It's a long story, I'll tell you all later."

"Quiet down everyone. We have a new student with us today. Against his knowledge his magic had been bound until earlier today. He will be enrolled with the first years and be caught up until he can join the current third years in their classes. But first he needs sorted! Dudley Dursley, please have a seat," Dumbledore says while pointing at the stool. He places the hat on Dudley's head and Harry watches, not realizing he's holding his breath.

"Gryffindor!" the hat shouts. Gryffindor claps, and Harry motions Dudley to the seat next to him. On the other side of Dudley are the third years so he can get to know them as well.

"Welcome to Gryffindor Dudley," Harry smiles. Dudley smiles back. "You're in Gryffindor too?"

"I was until this year. I'm now actually in all four houses. I got re-sorted and the hat thought I fit everywhere. Everyone, this is my cousin Dudley."

Everyone greats Dudley and introduces themselves. While they are doing that Harry turns to Hermione. "Hermione, I might have gotten into trouble before coming to dinner. Can you show Dudley to the dorms, and give him a rundown of my life? Also mention the different houses, the all house common room and the hostility he might get from certain people for being my cousin. You also might want to explain the Tournament to him so he understands why the different schools are here."

"Yes Harry I'll tell Dudley everything. What did you do?"

"I might have gone into the forest to look at a unicorn Viktor pointed out?"

"Harry!" she scolds. "You'll be lucky if you aren't grounded all week!"

"I know," Harry scowls. "I didn't mean to go in that far. I was looking at it and it walked in further and I just followed. It was so beautiful Hermione! I didn't realize I was several yards in until Professor Snape yelled my name."

"Professor Snape caught you? You really are in trouble then."

"Yes, and by the glares I'm getting from Remus and Sirius they know what happened. Sirius told me he'd wallop my behind if I was ever caught in there."

"Good luck then," Hermione says with sympathy.

"Dudley, Hermione will show you the dorms and everything. She'll also fill you in on all the teachers, students and my life. It's a long story, and I have to go see Professor Snape after dinner and can't explain it all. It's important you know since people will either love you or hate you for being related to me."

"Okay Harry. I'm sure Hermione can tell me everything," Dudley says, smiling. When it's time for dessert Harry sees Viktor motioning for him and he walks over to join him at his table.

"Hi Viktor."

"How much trouble are you in? Professor Snape looked furious."

"I don't know. I have to go see him after dinner. I don't think it's looking good though since my guardians are glaring at me. Sirius warned me just this morning not to go in the forest."

"I'm sorry for pointing out the unicorn."

"It's not your fault, I should know better. I've almost gotten killed twice in that forest already, you'd think I'd know better than go anywhere near it."

The Durmstrang students look at Harry in shock. "Twice?"

"Yes, once by Voldemort and once by giant Acromantulas. When they say there are dangerous things in that forest they aren't joking."

Nobody has a reply and they all just look shocked at Harry. Soon the tables are cleared and Harry sees Dudley leave the Great Hall surrounded by Hermione, Ginny and Ron. He glances up at the Head Table and sees Sirius motioning for him to start moving. He sighs, says goodbye to Viktor and heads to their quarters in the teacher's wing.

Sirius and Remus are right behind him and motion for him to sit on the couch. Soon Severus comes through the fireplace and takes a seat.

"What the hell were you thinking Harry?" Sirius asks sternly.

"I wasn't. I honestly didn't think I'd gone in that far!"

"It's clear you weren't thinking. What did I tell you would happen if you got caught in the forest?"

Harry hangs his head. "You'd wallop my bum and possibly ground me."

"Do you feel you've deserved that punishment?"

"Look, I know I broke a major rule especially since I wasn't aware of my surroundings. But I was hoping to show Dudley flying and if I'm grounded I can't be there for him either. Please don't ground me or take away my broom. Please," Harry begs.

Sirius looks at him. "I was going to ground you for three days instead of spanking you. I know Severus already gave you two smacks. It's up to you. We can go into your room where I will spank you, or you can be grounded for three days."

Harry sighs, knowing he needs to be there for Dudley right now. "I choose the spanking."

"Very well. Please go to your room and stand in the corner. I'll be there in a minute."

Harry gets up and quietly walks out of the room. Sirius looks at Remus and Severus. "I really hoped I'd never have to punish him for this."

"I just didn't think it would so fast," Severus says. "But how many teenager would choose a spanking simply so they can be there for someone else? And all that for a cousin who has treated him terribly all those years."

Sirius nods. "I have to be firm with him, especially since I said I would spank him if he ever went in there. I guess I'll go deal with it now so he can go back to the dorms if he wants."

Sirius walks into Harry's room to find Harry sniffling in the corner. "Come here please," Sirius says while sitting on the side of the bed.

Harry walks over and Sirius can tell he has tears in his eyes. "Tears already?" he asks once Harry has sat himself next to him.

"I'm sorry I disobeyed you again Sirius. I really didn't mean to."

"I know you didn't pup. And you have handled yourself very well and very mature today. You made a mistake, but you are forgiven. This punishment is to remind you next time you are about to go into the forest what will happen, and hopefully it will deter you. I'm proud of the way you are dealing with Dudley being here. Let's get this over with, alright?"

Harry nods and soon finds himself face down across Sirius' lap. Before he realizes what's happening Sirius has tugged down his trousers and pants and landed the first smack. Sirius works quickly, and after ten smacks Harry is crying freely. Sirius ends the spanking with five hard smacks to Harry's sit spots before re-adjusting his clothing and rubbing circles on his back. Soon Harry sits up and hugs Sirius, mumbling apologies.

"Shhh it's alright Harry. It's forgiven and forgotten."

It takes a few minutes but finally Harry pulls away and wipes his face. "I should apologize to Severus and Remus as well and then see how Dudley is doing. I also need to give him everything we got in Diagon."

Sirius smiles at Harry and follows him out into the living room. Harry apologizes to Severus and Remus and gives them each a hug before disappearing.

"Do you think he realizes his eyes are red and it's obvious he's been punished?" Remus asks.

"Probably but I think he's more worried about Dudley and getting him his things than about anyone knowing he got punished," Sirius says.

"I hope you weren't too harsh on him?" Severus asks.

"Severus, you should know I would never be too harsh, if anything I'd be too lenient. If you want to know he got fifteen with my hand on his bare bottom."

Severus winces slightly. "Ouch. But no, that's not too harsh."

Remus snorts. "Sirius got more than that when I caught him there by himself our sixth year."

Severus looks interested, and Sirius glares at Remus, clearly remembering the incident. "What happened?" Severus asks.

"I made a bet with some students and lost. The loser had to go into the forest at night and stay for thirty minutes. We had a rule amongst the Marauders never to go into the forest alone. It was dangerous enough when we did it on full moons so we made an agreement never to go outside of that. I didn't think anyone knew, but it turns out Remus had just visited Hagrid and saw me go in. Let's just say when I came out I was met by a very angry Remus. He drug me off to the Room of Requirement and spanked my bare butt."

"That was the first time I spanked you on the bare too. I was furious you'd risk yourself like that over a silly bet. You were almost attacked while in there too." Remus says.

"Yeah it was stupid. And that spanking stopped me from making similar stupid bets several times since then. I never went into the forest without the others again."

"That must have been some spanking to have that effect."

"Oh it was. I got twenty five," Sirius says, wincing at the memory. "When James found out what had happened he scolded me as well. For some reason he always knew exactly what to say to make me feel guilty over what I'd done without really saying much. I'll never spank Harry that hard, but I was incredibly stubborn back then and somehow Remus knew I need a stronger reminder. Several students got injured in the forest after some of those bets so it was a good thing I didn't participate anymore."

"I'm glad I wasn't part of your friend's group then," Severus says.

Sirius laughs. "I was the only one who got spanked and scolded, and only because I was Remus' mate. James had known me for a long time and knew sometimes I just needed to be reminded of how stupid what I did was. Neither he nor Peter knew Remus spanked me until we had already graduated, and that was only because James walked into my room once right when Remus landed a warning smack on my backside."

"Do you ever wonder if James and Lily would have spanked Harry?" Remus asks.

Sirius nods. "I know James would have. I was actually there when they discussed it. Harry had just been born and they knew James would be the disciplinarian. Lily said she'd be more comfortable in the role of comforting Harry after punishment. James asked Lily if she would have a problem with Harry being spanked since James was spanked growing up and saw it as effective, and Lily said she trusted James to be fair in punishments. Off course neither of them ever got to play either role," Sirius finishes sadly.

They all just sit in silence, none of them knowing what to say.

Meanwhile Harry has made it to the Gryffindor common room to find Hermione just finishing her story. Dudley looks at Harry in awe. "I never knew you had been through that much Harry. I always believed mum and dad when they talked about your parents being drunks who died in a car crash, but they were really war heros. And I didn't know you were famous or that you've fought that dark wizard twice already! And all the other stuff you've done! Hermione says a lot of Slytherins are against you because you defeated the dark wizard, and that they will either try to become my friend to get close to you or hate me for being your cousin."

Harry smiles shyly. "It's really no big deal. I'm glad you know everything now Dudley."

"Yeah and Neville explained the Lordships and stuff to me. That is pretty cool! And don't be so modest, it really is a big deal."

"If you say so. I came to bring you your things that we got in Diagon. Want me to help you put it away?"

"Sure," Dudley says before following Harry up the stairs to the dormitory. "Professor McGonnagal gave me my schedule. All those classes sound interesting but I have no idea what any of them are."

Harry smiles while resizing all of Dudley's belongings before putting it all away with the flick of his hand. He doesn't notice Dudley's awed expression at that bit of magic. "You'll find out soon. All your books are on the shelf. Even if you don't have homework, try reading the material so you get caught up faster. It will help. And if you ever need help, just go to the all house common room and there will always be someone there to help you."

"Thank you Harry. I don't understand why you are so nice to me when I've been so horrible to you."

Harry sighs. "I've always gotten the feeling that you didn't know better. As long as you don't fall back into those habits I'll give you the benefit of the doubt."

"Thank you. By the way, your eyes are red. You got spanked didn't you."

"Yeah I did but I'd rather not talk about it."

"That's fine. I would have hated to talk about it whenever dad spanked me when I was little. He'd do it if I wasn't mean enough to you in school. So Ron says you are amazing at flying a broom?"

Harry's eyes light up. "Yeah I'm pretty good. I'm on the Gryffindor team. It's still light out, want to go try?"

Dudley nods excitedly and they walk back downstairs where Harry summons his broom while passing through the common room. The others see them heading out with Harry's broom and quickly follow. When they get to the pitch Harry summons a school broom and puts in the ground by Dudley.

Slowly he begins to teach Dudley the same way he learned. They quickly find out flying isn't Dudley's thing, just like Hermione, but he is having fun trying. When it starts to get dark, Dudley stops and tells Harry to show him something. Harry shoots up into the sky, releases the practice snitch and starts flying. Before anyone realizes it he is joined by Viktor who had seen them heading to the pitch and the two fly like crazy until finally Harry catches the snitch.

"That was amazing Harry!" Dudley says. He can barely contain his excitement at all the new things he's seeing and learning.

Ron snorts. "That's not just amazing. That's Viktor Krum, he goes to Durmstrang. He is here for the Tournament and he's an international Quidditch star. It's bloody brilliant."

The group starts to make their way inside as it's getting dark. Once in the common room they all start heading towards their dorm for an early night. Harry gets into bed, thinking about how things are going to change. He's worried Severus will be more focused on Dudley now and won't have time for him, but he doesn't want to voice those concerns. He knows he still has Sirius and Remus, but he likes the steady presence that is Severus. He also knows he suggested Severus as magical guardian, and now has to live with that. He just hopes Dudley fits in well and won't need Severus much. He immediately feels bad for thinking so selfishly, and ends up falling into a restless sleep.


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter will contain light CP (not a full spanking).

Chapter 30

Severus wakes up by a flare of bright light, only to come face to face with Fawkes. He notices Fawkes is carrying a note and groans. There is only one reason Fawkes would be in his bedroom this early in the morning, and that is because Dumbledore needs to see him before breakfast.

He thought the day before went too smoothly, and he has a bad feeling that Dumbledore has interfered with his guardianship of Dudley somehow. What reason Dumbledore would have for doing so is anyone's guess. When Severus gets to the headmaster's office he is not disappointed in his assumptions.

"Severus, while I appreciate you stepping in with Mr. Dursley yesterday, the Ministry has concern about your guardianship. Because of that, I paid Mr. and Mrs. Dursley a visit last night and they have agreed to transfer the magical guardianship to Filius Flitwick. They agreed he would be a better choice considering your background. I personally felt that it would be too much for you to take on along with your teaching, brewing for the hospital wing and Head of House duties. I hope you are not too disappointed."

Severus keeps a blank face but inside he's seething. Filius has just as many duties, but this is Dumbledore's way of saying he doesn't want him near someone so close to Harry. "Off course Albus. I merely stepped in when needed. I'm sure Filius will do excellent in guiding Mr. Dursley."

"I'm glad you agree with me. Mr. Dursley will be informed before breakfast. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get some letters sent."

Seeing it for the dismissal it is, Severus leaves the office only to floo to Sirius and Remus' quarters from the nearest fireplace. He sees that they are both up already.

"Dumbledore once again interfered and had the Dursleys agree to transfer the magical guardianship to Filius," Severus says after greeting them.

Remus looks thoughtful. "That might not be too bad. Filius is also Harry's Head of House which helps. To be honest, I thought Harry agreed to everything too easily yesterday. For someone who has been bullied by Dudley all his life, I expected him to put up more of a fuss over you being his guardian. Severus, I think Harry has gotten attached to you and that would have taken you away from him, even if that wasn't the intention. Dobby!"

"Yes master Remy?"

"Please pop to Harry and ask him to come up here before breakfast please."

"Remus, you really think Harry has gotten attached to me? I feel like I haven't really been there for him except when he's in trouble."

"Don't sell yourself short Severus. Over the summer you showed Harry a different side of yourself, and you haven't changed that. Harry sought out your company several times during the summer and he wouldn't do that if he didn't like you. It's harder here because you can't be publicly seen together as friends, and we've all been busy. He values your opinion and guidance, even if he glares at you after a scolding. You might be stricter than either Sirius or I, but it's not like he's gotten into any big trouble yet."

"I think yet is the key word and I'm assuming you're ignoring what happened this summer?"

Remus laughs. "That was just him testing all of us. He was acting like a normal teenager, and I was happy to see it. Besides the incidents with Draco, he's been very well behaved. Yesterday he showed a lot of maturity. I'd be incredibly worried if he acted like that all the time and never got in any trouble or had any attitude. He's fourteen, and I've never met a fourteen year old boy who doesn't occasionally need to be reined back in."

Before Severus can comment, Harry walks through the door. "Hey Remus, you wanted to see me?"

"Actually, I wanted to see you," Severus says. "I had a meeting with the headmaster this morning. He has interfered with Dudley, and met with the Dursleys. The guardianship has been transferred to Professor Flitwick."

Remus doesn't fail to see the brief flicker of relief in Harry's eyes, which confirms his suspicions. "Oh alright. Professor Flitwick will be good too. I'm surprised the headmaster hasn't asked how we found out Dudley is a wizard."

"I have a feeling he is trying to figure it out without asking, and will only bring it up if he is unsuccessful," Severus replies. He too had seen the flicker of relief and wonders how attached Harry is really getting. He doesn't understand how Harry could get so attached so quickly.

"Fair enough. I'm going to breakfast. Bye!" Harry says while walking out. He feels guilty for being relieved, but at the same time he knows Flitwick will be good with Dudley. He's one of the first at breakfast and sits down at the Gryffindor table. Soon he is joined by Viktor, Nickolas, Luna and Hermione.

"Uhh Luna this is the Gryffindor table," he says.

"I know Harry," Luna replies, seemingly unfaced by this. She continues eating quietly. Harry shrugs his shoulder at Hermione. He starts to take a bite from his food when he feels a light smack on the back of his head. Looking around he sees that it was Sirius, and wonders what's going on. When he thinks about it, he realizes he forgot to cast the charms.

Viktor looks in amusement as Harry casts the charms with more flourish than normal while pointedly looking at Sirius. When Sirius sends him a thumbs up back, he laughs. "He really cares about you," he says in what's almost amazement.

"Why wouldn't he? He's my godfather?"

"Yeah but he was a convicted mass murderer who spent twelve years in prison," Nickolas says.

"He was innocent."

"That's what they say, but how do you know? The stories we heard all said he could have faked the memories and lied under veritasserum."

"I know he is innocent because I was there when Peter Pettigrew admitted to the crime."

"They could have lied to you."

Seeing that Harry is about to lose his temper, Hermione places a calming hand on his arm which he shrugs off. She looks up at Sirius in slight panic, noticing that he has noticed something is going on as well. "He did not lie to me, and he did not fake the memories. He is innocent."

"I don't know, it seems far fetched to me. A lot of us think he's using memory and compulsion charms to get people to believe him."

At hearing Sirius compared to Dumbledore, Harry explodes and his magic ripples. All the glasses in the Great Hall break and the windows are blown out. The few students there run out, and Sirius, Remus and Severus rush towards Harry. Knowing not to touch Harry, Severus starts speaking to him. "Focus Harry, bring up your shields. That's it. Now push away that anger behind the shields. Slowly now. Now take deep breaths. In and out. In and out. There you go. Keep breathing until you are calmed down."

When Harry is calmed down, Viktor turns to Nickolas. "You idiot. What made you provoke him like that, you've seen how powerful he is. Go. I will be telling Karkarof about this."

"Harry, want to tell us what happened?" Sirius asks softly.

Harry shakes his head so Hermione speaks up. "Nickolas was saying he won't believe you are innocent because you likely used compulsion and memory charms on Harry to make him believe your story."

She hears Remus and Sirius inhale sharply, but is unsure why they have that strong of a reaction. Knowing exactly why that would have set off Harry, Sirius takes him into an embrace.

"Gentlemen, I'd like your help putting the Great Hall back in order. Mr. Potter-Black, please report to my office as soon as you are able," the stern voice of the headmaster is heard from behind them.

"Sir, Harry didn't do anything. He was provoked," Viktor says.

"Thank you Mr. Krum but I heard the explanation. I will handle it."

Soon the Great Hall is restored and students are allowed in to eat breakfast. Word of Harry's explosion has made it's way around and everyone is staring at him in awe. It is well know that accidental magic isn't possible at Hogwarts, so for someone to blow out the windows in anger shows the tremendous amount of power he has. Harry tries to ignore it as much as possible, but finally gives up and heads to the headmaster's office.

When he gets there he is quickly joined by Sirius and Remus. "Professors you have classes to teach. There is no need for you to be here."

"With all due respect, Harry has classes to attend and we have a right to be here as his guardians. Now would you please get to it so we can get to class?"

"Very well. Mr. Potter, that display of magic was a disgrace to our school. To see one of our students blow out windows out of anger does not show the school in a good light, especially when it is during an argument with a student from another school. You will serve detention with Mr. Filch after dinner for the remainder of this week. I hope you will keep your magic under control next time."

Harry gasps in shock. "But sir, it wasn't on purpose."

"Mr. Potter, accidental magic is not possible within Hogwards' wards. Therefore I have reason to believe you did do this on purpose and you are lucky I'm not suspending you. Now get to class."

Wanting to say more but stopped by Sirius' hand on his shoulder he walks out dejectedly. As soon as they are out of the office he shakes Sirius' hand off and stalks away muttering angry curse words under his breath.

"We'll give him some time. I believe he is heading potions? Severus can deal with him."

They each head to class while Harry enters the potions classroom five minutes after the start of class. "Mr. Potter, how nice of you to join us."

"The _headmaster _wanted to see me," Harry says, spitting out the word headmaster with obvious disgust. Realizing that something is wrong, Severus ignores it.

"Fifty lines of "I must be on time for class" for next class period Mr. Potter. Take a seat."

"Seriously? You are punishing me for being late because I was with the headmaster?"

"Mr. Potter, I have no problem assigning you detention as well."

"Get in line. I already have a week with Filch so you'll have to wait your turn."

He hears the gasps from the Gryffindors in the room, both at the fact that Harry got detention for an accident, and at his daring to talk to Professor Snape like that. "Mr. Potter, I do not appreciate your attitude. Since you can't seem to control your tongue, please leave and return at the end of class. I better see an improvement in your attitude by then."

Harry grabs his bag and stalks out of the classroom. On the third floor he almost runs into Dudley, who looks lost. "What are you looking for?" Harry asks, trying to keep the anger out of his voice but not succeeding.

Dudley, recognizing that Harry is upset over something, calmly answers. "Defense classroom."

"Down the hall on your left. Tell Professor Lupin you were lost and he won't take points," Harry says before stalking away. He gets to the Ravenclaw common room and sits down on the couch. He is soon joined by Professor Flitwick, who has a free period and had received a note from Severus to go check on Harry.

"Bee in your bonnet Harry?"

"Leave me alone."

"Harry, I can tell you are upset. What happened?" Filius says, trying to remain calm.

"Dumbledore."

"Professor Dumbledore Harry. What did Professor Dumbledore do or say?"

"Detention for a week with Filch for the accident in the Great Hall. He told me he doesn't believe it was an accident."

"It was clear you didn't have control Harry. I was amazed by your power levels. Have you ever tested your level?"

"Yes. It's bright green."

Filius breathes in deeply, knowing exactly how powerful that is. "Harry, how have you not being doing better in all your classes?"

"Because _someone_ bound my magic and until this summer I didn't know."

"Harry, I promise that whatever you tell me won't be told to anyone else. As half-goblin I'm immune to veritasserum and Legilimency as well. Who bound your magic?"

"Our esteemed headmaster. By the way, I blew up because Nickolas compared Sirius to Dumbledore."

Starting to see the full picture now, Filius sighs. He has always had suspicions about the headmaster, but he never expected him to go that far. "Harry, I won't punish you as Head of House for getting kicked out of class. I will see what I can do regarding your detention, maybe I can have it transferred to me under disguise of wanting to keep a closer eye on you. That being said, now that I know your power levels I expect you to improve in all practical lessons. I had a feeling you were holding back, but now that I know you truly were I will not hesitate to punish you if I see it again, understood?"

"Yes sir."

"In Charms I will give you additional Charms to practice when you've mastered the one we are working on that day. No student of mine will ever be complacent if I have anything to say about it. Now class is almost over so you should head down to meet Professor Snape. Try to keep the attitude out of your voice when speaking to him, it has a tendency to help lessen punishments. And I will not mention any of this to anyone, it's probably best if people don't know how powerful you are and that you are aware of it"

Harry sighs before getting up. He knows he was rude and disrespectful to Severus, but at the time he just needed to be left alone. He's happy Flitwick is on his side now, and knows it will be useful at some point.

When he gets to the potions classroom students are just leaving. Without saying a word to anyone he walks into the classroom and stops in front of Severus' desk. Severus is leaning against the front of his desk, glaring at the students to leave faster. Knowing he's in trouble, Harry doesn't look up to meet his eyes. Once all the students are gone, Severus closes and wards the door before closing the short distance between him and Harry. He quickly turns him sideways and gives him a hard smack on his backside. "Don't you ever take that tone with me again young man, especially in front of others. Normally that would have landed you in detention and you'd be scrubbing cauldrons, but as that is apparently not an option I have to think of something else. What do you think should be your punishment?"

"You mean the smack wasn't it?"

"No, but I can give you a few more."

Harry shakes his head. "I don't know Sir. I know I was rude and disrespectful. But you have to understand, the headmaster had just told me he doesn't believe it was an accident and then gave me a week detention for supposedly making the school look bad! I was still upset by what happened, and really just needed to be alone but knew if I skipped class I'd be in even more trouble."

"And you couldn't sit and be quiet?"

"I should have. I'm sorry for the disrespect."

Feeling bad for Harry as he's obviously had a hard morning, Severus reaches over and lands two more smacks on Harry's backside, both much softer than the first had been. "There, that should be enough punishment. It was that or taking away your broom, which I don't think you want either."

"No sir, I'd rather get a few smacks and keep my broom."

"That's what I thought. Now go calm down before lunch. In our next lesson we're going to practice using Occlumency to prevent a repeat of this morning, but until then please try to avoid arguments. If you feel that someone is making you angry, walk away, alright?"

"Yes sir," Harry says, still slightly upset but feeling a bit better. He's suddenly pulled into a brief hug before being propelled towards the door.

"If anyone asks, I scolded you severely and informed your Head of House."

"What, you don't want me to telling people you smacked my bum?"

"Cheeky brat. Go," Severus says, trying to hide his amusement.

The rest of the day is much better for Harry, and while he still gets sideways glances from other students, nobody says anything to him. At dinner he is approached by Professor Flitwick, who informs him that his detentions have been changed and to report to the Charms classroom. Harry is sitting at the Ravenclaw table, facing the Slytherin table, and he notices Nickolas fidgeting in his seat. He briefly wonders at that, but decides to ignore it.

"Corporal Punishment is allowed at Durmstrang," he suddenly hears Luna say.

He looks at her in shock. "It is?"

"Yes, they believe it makes them tougher. That's what daddy says. I imagine Nickolas is finding sitting uncomfortable tonight."

Harry looks at Luna oddly as she is sitting with her back to the Slytherin table, but by now he is getting used to the occasional odd comment from her. He shrugs, not particularly concerned that Nickolas got in trouble, before getting up to head to detention. When he enters the classroom he sees a stack of parchment at one of the desks and sits down.

"Harry, here are copies of all your essays in Charms until this year. I want you to re-do them during your detentions this week. I believe a lot of them could teach you something new if you actually put the effort into the work. I left out the ones that you appeared to have done the research for."

Harry looks in shock at his stack of essays. It really would take him all week, if not longer! "My hand will fall off by the end of the week!"

Filius chuckles. "No it won't. Would you rather be scrubbing bathrooms?"

"No, this is fine, thank you," Harry quickly amends.

He is an hour into his detention when Dudley walks in. "Ahh Mr. Dursley, please come sit up here. I want to get to know you and prepare a schedule for you to see me regularly and get caught up in all your classes."

Dudley sees Harry and looks in confusion. He had spend most of the day with the Hufflepuf third years, as he had quickly made friends with some of them. "Harry, what are you doing here?"

"Mr. Potter is in detention. He will continue writing in silence while we talk over here," Professor Flitwick responds.

Harry is in detention for another two hours, when he is dismissed along with Dudley. They walk silently back to the Gryffindor common room. "How was your first day?"

"It was good," Dudley says. "I met some really nice third years from Hufflepuf. I think they could become good friends. Some of the third years from my dorm are nice too. What did you do to get detention?"

"That's good, I'm glad you are making friends on your own. Did you not hear how I lost my temper and blew out the Great Hall windows this morning?"

"I did but I thought that was an accident?"

"It was. I still had to report to the headmaster's office and he gave me a week's detention. Professor Flitwick is my Head of House so I'm serving it with him."

"That sucks. I was hoping to go flying again."

"Sorry Dudley, I really won't have time. I have extra lessons with Sirius and Remus during the week and my own homework, and now this stupid detention as well. I'm sure your new friends will take you though."

"Yeah I'll ask them. I hope I never get detention, it looked like you were writing a lot."

"Yea detention isn't fun. Professor Snape usually has you cleaning cauldrons or cutting up disgusting ingredients. Most other professors have you write lines or an essay. Hagrid it's usually something to do with animals. Try to never get one with Filch, he makes you clean all around the castle and his favorite is the bathrooms."

Dudley looks in disgust. "I don't know how to clean and I'm not cleaning bathrooms!"

"Then don't get detention. If a teacher is really mad at you they'll send you to Filch for detention, so try to avoid that."

They had reached the common room and stepped through the portrait hole. "I'll see you around Dudley, I need to get homework done," Harry says before walking into his room. He calls for Dobby and has Dobby pop him to Sirius' quarters.

"Harry! It's after curfew, why are you here?"

"I have homework to do but my hand hurts from all the writing Flitwick made me do. Do you have something that will help?"

"Professor Flitwick Harry and no I don't. You ought to ask Severus, hold on let me floo him."

A few minutes later Severus steps through with a jar. "Sirius said you need something for a muscle ache? What did you do?"

"Professor Flitwick had me writing so much in detention my hand hurts. I have to do homework. Can you make it go away?"

"I really shouldn't. It is meant to be punishment after all. However, you need to get your homework done and it's preferable that we can read it. Put out your hand."

Harry puts out his hand and Severus rubs in the cream. "Keep the jar, it is also useful for muscle ache after Quidditch."

"Thanks!" Harry says before having Dobby pop him back to his room.

Harry ends up staying up until well past midnight to get his homework done. This starts a pattern for the rest of the week, and when Saturday morning comes around he is exhausted. He knows he'll get scolded if he skips breakfast, but he just wants to sleep and ends up sleeping until almost lunch.

He gets up, throws on some jeans and a shirt and heads down to the Great Hall for lunch. He sits down at the Gryffindor table next to Dudley, whom he hasn't really talked to all week.

"Hi Dudley. How have you been? Sorry I've been so busy all week."

"Hi Harry. It's alright, I know you've been busy trying to keep up with everything. I've been good, I love it here! Everyone's been really nice and accepting. I've been talking to Professor Flitwick a lot and he thinks I can get caught up with the third years by the end of the year if I put in the work and do work over the summer holidays. I'm actually already taking my third year electives this year so I don't get behind in those. He's really nice, and I'm happy he's helping me. I was a little bit intimidated by Professor Snape, and after having his class even more so."

"I'm glad you are adjusting well Dudley. I love this place, it's the first place I felt at home."

"Mr. Potter, take this with your meal please," Harry hears Severus say behind him. "Your godfather asked me to brew this for you since you skipped breakfast. See that it doesn't happen again, I do not have time to brew potions every time you decide the Great Hall is too good for you."

Harry takes the potions vial and recognizes it as a nutrient potion. "Thank you sir, I won't let it happen again." Harry heard the hidden message in what Severus said: don't skip another meal. The quickly drinks the potion and hands the vial back before continuing with his lunch.

When he leaves the Great Hall and heads in the direction of the all house common room Professor Flitwick stops him. "Mr. Potter, do you have a minute? There is something I want to give you."

Harry follows the professor to his office. "Harry, I have re-read all your essays that you've done this week. The level at which you are thinking in Charms right now is well above a fourth year. Therefore, while you will be participating in class I will also be giving you extra assignments. When you succeed in a practical in class, I will give you a more advanced one. You will then have extra homework on the advanced work. I will still grade you on your normal homework. Professor Dumbledore sent a memo that he is against anyone working ahead in any classes, and while I have a feeling it's related to you somehow, I'm going to ignore it. I will not have your talents go to waste. If anyone asks, just say I think you need extra help. The assignments will be charmed so only you, and anyone you tell about it, can read it. Is that acceptable?"

"Sir, while I appreciate the extra help, I don't think I have time for it. I already have extra lessons with Sirius and Remus three days a week and I can barely keep up with my work now."

"I think as long as you stay out of trouble and out of detention you will manage. I will not give you that much that you won't get your regular work done, and if you are truly stressed for time I want you to come talk to me and we can work something out. This is to improve your skills. Now you said Sirius and Remus, but you have lessons with Severus as well correct?"

Harry flushes slightly and doesn't say anything. "That's what I thought. I won't say anything. I don't like what the headmaster is doing. He can't fire me or he'll go against the entire goblin nation since I have tenure, so I'm going to do what I want. And what I want is to help you be the best you can be, no matter how much the headmaster is afraid you'll be more powerful than him. Now get going, I'm sure you have better things to do now that you finally have some free time."

Harry walks out of the office in a daze, thinking the tiny professor is a lot sharper than many give him credit for. He almost runs into Cedric. "Sorry Cedric, didn't see you there."

"That's alright Harry. Do you want to come play Quidditch? Several of us are going out to the pitch for a pickup game."

"Sure! I'll meet you out there!" Harry says with excitement.

When he gets to the pitch, he sees that half the school is out there, and quickly two interhouse teams are formed of the best players from all houses. Harry notices his friends in the stands and sees that Dudley is there with his friends. He even sees some professors enjoying the nice weather.

Soon the game has started and Harry is flying all over the place. Cedric is the other team's seeker and they are having fun flying against each other. The game lasts nearly three hours, with Harry catching the snitch at the end which ties the game. When Harry lands he is surrounded by the other teams, nobody minding the fact that there are no winners or losers. Everyone had fun, and the teams were fairly evenly matched.

They all walk back inside, and those who played Quidditch are all talking and laughing about the game and all the moves throughout. Without realizing it, they all sit at the same table in the Great Hall. Up at the Head Table this does not go unnoticed.

"Does Harry even realize how popular he is right now?" Sirius asks.

"He has no clue, which is how it should be," Remus says.

Before food appears on the table the headmaster stands up. "Everyone, please return to your own House tables. While Mr. Potter-Black may sit wherever he pleases, that does not go for the rest of you. Food will not be served until everyone is at the correct table. Mr. Potter-Black, please come up here for a minute."

Harry walks up to the Head Table, confused why it's such a big deal. "Mr. Potter-Black, while you can sit where you want I do not want you encouraging others to do the same. Everyone sits at their own House table, understood?"

"Sir, aren't you always talking about house unity? Isn't it wonderful that we were all having fun and talking that we forgot we were in separate Houses and wanted to sit together for dinner?"

"Mr. Potter- Black, you have the all house common room to mingle. You are still separate Houses and you will sit as such during meals and you will take classes with your House. I am merely warning you not to encourage such activities as this in the future."

Harry wants to say something else back but a slight shake of Sirius' head has him keeping quiet. "Yes sir. May I sit down now?"

"Yes you may."

As soon as Harry sits down food appears on the tables. Harry barely notices, lost in thought. When a serving dish of potatoes nudges his arm he looks up to see Sirius pointedly levitating the dish in front of him, prompting him to eat. Harry quickly eats and then stomps out of the Great Hall. Why is the headmaster being so difficult? It had been a great day and he had just ruined it! Before he can walk out of the castle he is stopped by the twins.

"Hi there Harry."

"We noticed you looked a little angry at the Headmaster there."

"We can help. Follow us."

Harry follows the twins up to the Seventh floor where they pace in front of a painting before a door appears and they walk through.

"The Room of Requirement. This is where we do all our planning."

"You want revenge on the headmaster, we can help."

"I'm not sure if I want revenge. Doing anything will probably get me in a lot of trouble at this point."

"Only if you get caught," Fred grins.

"Alright, tell me your plan and I'll tell you if I'll participate. I'm telling you now that if I get in trouble I'm blaming you."

Fred and George go over the plan with Harry, and by the end Harry agrees. They do have the map and the cloak after all. They quickly plan everything and agree to meet in the Gryffindor Common Room at midnight.

They calmly walk back down to the Great Hall, where the naming of the Champions will soon take place. They sit down on the benches and wait along with everyone else.

"Welcome everyone! Tonight we will reveal the Champions from each school. Each Champion will represent their school in each of the three tasks. The first task will be at the end of November, the second in February and the final task in May. While the Champions will not know what the first task is, they will be given clues for the second and third task. Now, let's get started!"

The Goblet of Fire glows red, before spitting out a piece of parchment. Everyone is holding their breath.

"From Durmstrang. Viktor Krum!" Everyone claps politely while Viktor and Karkaroff disappear through the side door.

"From Beauxbatons. Fleur Delacour!" Once again there is polite clapping. Next the hall falls into a deadly silence, knowing the Hogwarts Champion is next.

"And finally from Hogwarts. Cedric Diggory!" There is loud clapping and cheering and Cedric looks happy when he makes his way up to the front and disappears through the door.

"Now that the Champions have been chosen," Dumbledore starts before he's cut off by the Goblet flaring up and spitting out a piece of parchment for the fourth time. Dumbledore grabs it and looks at it, before searching the hall.

"Harry Potter?!"

Harry gasps and looks at the headmaster in shock. "Harry Potter! The Goblet has chosen you as a fourth Champion. Please make your way to the front!"

Harry doesn't move, he's not even sure if he remembers how. Fred and George help him and push him towards the front. "This is a mistake, I didn't put my name in. I don't want to compete. You can't make me. I'm too young." He is mumbling while walking to the front.

Is is caught in an embrace from Sirius before being led through the side door. As soon as he steps through Cedric and Viktor look at him in concern. "Harry, are you alright? You are very pale and look like you are about to pass out," Cedric says.

"My name came out of the Goblet," is all Harry can say before Dumbledore storms through the door, grabbing Harry by his shirt.

"Mr. Potter, did you put your name in the Goblet?"

"No! I swear, I don't want to compete! I'm not old enough! You can't make me!"

Dumbledore lets go and turns to Ludo. "Ludo, you know the contract. Can Mr. Potter get out of it?"

"No, it's a binding magical contract. He'll lose his magic if he doesn't compete."

"Then Mr. Potter is now officially the fourth Champion."

At hearing those words Harry loses all feeling in his legs, and if it wasn't for Sirius holding him he would have crumbled to the floor. Out of the corner of his eye he sees Remus and Severus walk into the room. "Headmaster, if there is nothing else I'm taking Harry to my quarters," Sirius says. He doesn't wait for a reply and leads Harry out the side door.

When they get to Sirius' quarters and are soon joined by Remus and Severus, Sirius puts Harry on the couch before starting to pace.

"Lord Peterson," they hear Harry say.

"What?" Sirius asks.

Harry sits up more. "Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"Get Lord Peterson for me. Now."

It takes mere minutes before Lord Peterson appears in their living room, dressed in casual clothing. He looks slightly shocked before he takes in his surroundings.

"Sorry about that sir. I should have told Dobby to give you time to get ready. We have an emergency."

"That's alright Lord Potter-Black. What's going on? If I may say so, you don't look so well and your guardians don't either."

"They chose the Champions for the Tournament tonight. My name came out as a fourth Champion without a school. They said I can't get out of it without losing my magic. Is there anything you can do?"

Lord Peterson slowly sinks into a chair, fully understanding the severity of what's going on. "I will try my best Lord Potter-Black. I will go to the headmaster's office right now and get a copy of the contract and rules. If you'll excuse me."

"They're in the Great Hall with the other Champions," Severus says.

Lord Peterson quickly makes his way down and when he walks in, he sees a heated debate between Dumbledore and the other headmaster over Harry's entry. The three other Champions are talking off to the side, and from what he can overhear they are concerned for Harry.

"Excuse me, I need to speak to Professor Dumbledore."

"And who are you?" Karkaroff asks.

"I am Lord Peterson, Lord Potter-Black's solicitor. I would like a copy of the contract and the Tournament rules. Immediately."

"Very well Lord Peterson," Dumbledore says before summoning a copy. "Please let me know should you have questions."

"Certainly," Lord Peterson says before turning to walk away. When he is close to the other three Champions Cedric stops him.

"You are Harry's solicitor? He sure moves fast doesn't he. Please tell me you can get him out of this? He doesn't want to compete and has made that clear from the start."

"I will try my best. Now I must get back to him. Congratulations to you three."

When Lord Peterson gets back to the living room, they all look up. "I have the contract and rules. I'm going to my office and research this. I also have a copy of the parchment that came out of the Goblet. Can your elf pop me back?"

"Dobby!" Harry calls. "Please escort Lord Peterson back to where he came from."

It is now after curfew but Harry doesn't care. "I'm going back to my room," he says before getting up.

"Are you sure? You are welcome to stay here?" Sirius says, concern evident in his voice.

"Yeah, I just want to go talk to my friends and then go to bed."

Harry walks to the Ravenclaw Common Room, where complete silence falls over the room when he walks in. He sighs. "I did not put my name in the Goblet nor did I ask someone else to do it for me. I do not want to compete and my solicitor is already researching ways to get me out of it. I support Cedric as the Hogwarts Champion."

Quickly everyone gets back to what they are doing as opposed to staring at him. He walks through his room into the Hufflepuf Common Room where he is met with outright hostility. Cedric quickly throws up a shield along with his own.

"I will tell you what I told Ravenclaw. I did not put my name in the Goblet nor did I ask someone else to do it for me. I do not want to compete and my solicitor is already researching ways to get me out of it. IF there is no way out, I will compete to the extent of surviving, not to win. I support Cedric as the only Hogwarts Champion."

"I know Harry didn't want to enter. We've talked about it before, and I know he'd never do this. I stand behind him, and will not accept hostility from anyone towards him," Cedric says, smiling at Harry. It makes Harry feel better.

"Thank you Cedric. I just came to tell you that," he says before walking back into his room.

When he walks into the Gryffindor Common Room he is immediately attacked by a hug from Hermione. "Oh Harry!"

"Calm down Hermione. I have my solicitor working on getting me out of it, and if he can't I will compete to the extent of surviving, not to win."

"Sure. The Great Harry Potter doesn't want to win. We all know you entered the Tournament, and why you didn't tell us how we could do it is beyond me. I thought we were friends. How could you," Ron spits at him before stomping up the stairs.

"Ignore him Harry, he's just jealous," Neville says. "We believe you."

Most of Gryffindor nods in agreement, but Harry doesn't miss Seamus going up the stairs after Ron, clearly agreeing with him. He sits down on the couch dejectedly.

"He clearly doesn't know me at all, does he?"

"So your solicitor is going to get you out of it?" Fred asks.

"He's going to try. He got a copy of the contract and rules and will let me know what he finds. Until then I have to compete. I hate it. Why can't my life just be simple and easy? Why is it always me?"

"Harry, why would someone put your name in?" Dudley asks quietly.

"Probably the same reason this always happens to me. In the hope that I die during the Tournament probably."

Dudley's mouth drops open. "You can't be serious."

Harry looks around. "Has nobody explained to him the details of the stories of my first three years?"

When they all shake their head, he sighs. "Very well. Get comfortable and I'll tell you about my first three years here."

Harry proceeds to tell Dudley about his first three years, noticing that several other Gryffindors are also listening. He knows most of them have never heard the full stories. When he is done, Dudley is looking at him in awe. "Harry that is crazy."

"I know. It's my life though, or at least appears to be."

They all talk for a while longer before they start heading to bed. Soon it is close to midnight and Harry, Fred and George are the only ones left. "You still want to do this?" Fred asks.

"Yes, I'm ready for some fun to make me forget all this. And at this point I don't even care if I get caught, it's worth it."

They scan the map, notice that all the teachers are in their individual quarters, and head out of the Common Room. Unfortunately for Harry, he is unaware of the Charm Flitwick uses to let him know when one of his students is out of bed.

They sneak through the school and stop at the gargoyle. Reading the spell several times they all nod, before Harry wordlessly casts it on. They see the gargoyle glow slightly before going back to it's normal color. Next they start to make their way to the teacher's wing, but suddenly have to duck into an alcove and hold the invisibility cloak up as a shield to avoid being seen by Flitwick, who is heading from the teacher's wing to the Ravenclaw Common Room.

"Crap, I hope he's not doing bed check tonight."

"We'll be quick and maybe you can get back through Hufflepuf or Gryffindor Tower before he gets to your room."

They all head to the teacher's wing and cast a similar spell on its door. They grin at each other, knowing the next day will be interesting, and rush back to Gryffindor Tower. When they walk in, Harry quickly says goodnight and rushes into his room, only to come face to face with Flitwick sitting at his desk chair.

"Uhhm hi?"

"Where were you?"

"I just came from Gryffindor."

"I have a Charm that alerts me when a student is out of bed. Honesty might work better."

Harry sighs, knowing he's caught. "I was wandering the halls."

"Hand me your broom please."

Harry hesitantly hands over his broom. "You can come get this from me next Sunday. Now get to bed and don't let me catch you outside the dorms after curfew again, understood?"

"Yes sir."

Harry doesn't even consider disobeying and quickly gets ready for bed.

The next morning at breakfast Harry sits at the Gryffindor table with Fred and George. "I got caught by Flitwick. Lost my broom for a week," Harry whispers. They look at him in sympathy.

When Dumbledore turns to Minerva to ask her something, his hair turns green. Students start laughing, and with every word he says the color changes. Minerva tries to tell him what's going on, when her hair turns purple. Hers is not changing as often though.

By now all the teachers are sporting different colors hair, which occasionally changes to something different. All the students are laughing. Dumbledore stands up, and tries to ask for silence but every word he tries to say comes out as a different animal sound instead. He quickly sits back down, the students howling in laughter. At every word his hair changes color.

Professor McGonnagal stands up. "Whomever played this *Quack* better come forward and perform the counter. This *Chirp* is disruptive." At each Quack her hair changes colors. Students are quickly figuring out that all the teachers' hair changes color when they try to say the word prank, and that they can't say the word.

Harry is practically on the floor laughing, along with all the other students. Soon all the professors leave the Great Hall. Harry has a feeling they'll be meeting to figure out the counter. Little do they know that Harry cast the spell in parseltongue as experiment, and the counter can only be cast in parseltongue. Off course they can just wait out the four hours the spell lasts.

Harry, Fred and George give each other satisfied grins before starting to laugh again. The grin doesn't go as unnoticed as they think it does, and none of them notice a certain blond Slytherin slipping out of the hall.

Up in the teacher's wing they are all trying any counter they can think off, with nothing working. They have figured out to avoid the word prank, but the headmaster can't say anything at all. A knock on the door startles them, and Severus opens it to find Draco Malfoy.

"Sir, I just saw something in the Great Hall you might find interesting."

"What is it Mr. Malfoy, as you can see we are a little busy."

"Potter and the Weasley twins gave each other very satisfied grins when they thought nobody was looking."

"Thank you Mr. Malfoy, you may go."

Severus turns around and stalks to where Flitwick is trying counters on Sirius and Remus. "I just had an interesting conversation with Mr. Malfoy. He is under the impression Harry is involved along with the Weasley twins."

Flitwick looks up. "I did catch him out of bed last night."

"You what?!" Severus nearly shouts. "That little brat. I know he was upset about the whole Tournament thing, but he actually sneaks out when there is someone potentially trying to kill him at Hogwarts? His backside is toast when I finally get a hold of him!"

"Severus, calm down. I think we need to go have a chat with the three young men and see if they are involved. If they are, I will deal with it," Remus, trying to give Harry the benefit of the doubt. "I will go get them and bring them back here."

Remus returns a few minutes later with a slightly worried looking Harry, Fred and George. "Gentlemen, it appears Mr. Malfoy believes you are involved in this. Professor Snape is a very skilled Legillimens so it's best for you to speak the truth. Did you do this?'

None of them say anything, knowing they are busted but not quite ready to admit it. "Would it help if I told you it wears off in four hours?" Harry says softly.

"No it would not. As you've just confirmed your guilt, please perform the counter. Headmaster first please."

"I can't sir," Harry says.

"Excuse me?"

"I can cast in on everyone except the Headmaster. There is no counter for that spell."

Remus' stern look has turned to angry. "Cast the counter on all of us. Now."

Harry casts the counter in parseltongue on all of them, before turning back to look at Remus. "Parseltongue? You cast the original spell in parseltongue, didn't you. That's why we couldn't counter it. You boys are in a world of trouble. The headmaster will be dealing with you once he can talk again. Until that time, Harry go to your room here in our quarters and take Fred and George with you. You will all be staying there until the spell wears off. Now move."

They didn't need to be told twice and quickly run off to Harry's room.

Remus sits down on the couch next to Sirius, putting his head in his hands. "What were they thinking?"

"I'm thinking Harry was still mad at the headmaster and Fred and George decided to lend him a hand," Sirius says. "You have to admit it's funny. Maybe not for the headmaster, but for us it was just one word we couldn't say for four hours."

Remus sighs. "Yes I'll agree it was well done. I have a feeling they are going to be doing a lot of detentions with Filch for this though."

"And somehow I think they will consider it worth it."

Most of the teachers leave to go do other things, and Severus sits down in a nearby chair. "Are you going to do anything as guardians? I still think a trip over my knee for sneaking out of the dorm is a good idea."

"I don't think we should punish him for the prank. The Headmaster will deal with that and he's entitled to have a little fun. However, we need to address the sneaking out thing. I don't think he realizes that his entry into the Tournament confirms that there is danger at the school," Sirius says.

Remus and Severus agree. "So how do you think we should deal with the sneaking out? Filius, did you punish him?"

"Yes, I took away his broom for a week. I think in this instance you need to just talk to him. The headmaster will be harsh on them, and yesterday was hard on Harry. I agree with Sirius that I don't think he realizes the danger, and he definitely didn't think about it last night. If he sneaks out again, a trip over Severus' knee might be exactly what he needs to get the point across, but after everything that happens I think he just needs a stern talking to."

Sirius and Remus agree immediately, and when they look at Severus he agrees as well. They decide to let Harry stew on it for a while longer and talk to him that afternoon during lessons.

Meanwhile in Harry's room he is sitting on his bed, trying not to panic. "My bum is toast. I've never seen Remus that angry."

"Harry, I'm sure it'll be fine. I'm more worried about the headmaster. How did they catch us anyway?"

"Malfoy. What did he see that made him tell them it was us?"

"I don't know but I see revenge in the future."

"I can't do anything drastic with him being an Heir."

"You can help us plan but we will do it. That way it won't be political suicide for you."

Harry looks at the twins. "Thank you. How long do you think they'll make us wait?"

"Probably until the spell wears off, which should be in an hour. We watched the map and saw him leave his office about three hours ago. He must not have spoken until he got to the Great Hall."

Harry sighs and leans back against the wall. They decide to play Exploding Snap to pass the time and when Remus comes in to tell them to head to the Headmaster's office he walks in on the three boys laughing and cheering.

"Gentlemen. The Headmaster would like to see you in his office."

They all swallow before getting up and leaving. "Come back here after lunch Harry," Remus says.

When they enter the Headmaster's office he is looking at them sternly. Professor McGonnagal and Professor Flitwick are already there as their Heads of House. "Gentlemen, I am very disappointed in you three. While a prank can be funny, this wasn't and prohibited me from working for several hours and interrupted breakfast."

If asked later Harry would say he has no idea why he said what he did. "All the students thought it was funny, Sir."

He hears Fred and George softly groan next to him. "Mr. Potter-Black, I do not appreciate your comments. All three of you will have two weeks detention with your Head of House. Mr. Potter-Black, for that little comment you can add a detention with Professor Snape this evening. All your detentions are Monday through Friday after dinner. Do not disrupt the school this way again. You are dismissed."

They walk back to the Gryffindor Common Room, where they walk in to loud applause, and everyone congratulating them on a good prank. Harry sits down next to Hermione. "How much trouble are you three in?"

"Two week's detention with our Head of House. I expected worse."

"Harry, it seems you've had nothing but detention since I've been here," Dudley says teasingly.

"That might be because that's true. I hope Professor Flitwick has enough of a sense of humor to make these two weeks easy on me."

They all spend the rest of the morning talking about the Tournament and the other schools, and after lunch Harry makes his way to the teacher's wing once again. He flops down on the couch and looks at Sirius, Remus and Severus, waiting for them to start their scolding that he is certain is coming.

"Harry, while your prank was funny, you shouldn't have done something different to the Headmaster. Thats just asking for punishment. That's all I'll say about that. I'm more concerned with you sneaking out after curfew. We've mentioned before it's not safe, but did it not cross your mind that the person who put your name in the Goblet is likely still here? That that person is likely trying to kill you?" Sirius asks.

Harry flushes bright red. "No, I hadn't thought of that. I was upset, and we had already planned the prank and decided to just do it. I didn't even consider the danger."

"You need to start thinking about that Harry. There is someone trying to hurt you and you need to be more cautious. Since you weren't aware of the danger, we are not going to punish you for it since Professor Flitwick already took away your broom. However, if you are caught out of the dorms after curfew again you will earn yourself a trip over my knee you won't soon forget, understood?" Severus says sternly.

"Yes sir."

"Very well. Today in your lessons we want to go over each of the Sacred Twenty Eight families and see how they are all related to other families so you have an idea of who is part of them. Tonight in your detention you will be scrubbing cauldrons. You really need to learn when it's good to keep quiet."

Soon they start focusing on the lessons, and Harry is amazed how many families are somehow related to the Sacred Twenty Eight.


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter 31

***Dumbledore POV - Starts when he sees the acceptance letter to Dudley. ***

Sitting at his desk, working through a pile of paperwork, Albus suddenly sees what looks like an acceptance letter added to the pile. As he gets a copy of those letters, this isn't anything unusual. What is unusual is that the school year has already started and he didn't think there were any prospective students turning eleven this month. He picks up the letter, reads the name and immediately feels his temper start to rise.

'How did he find out about his magical abilities? I thought I bound those tight enough that he'd never find out! Not much to do about it now, except make sure the boy continues to hate and bully Harry. The added stress of having Dudley at Hogwarts will likely not help with Harry's chances in the Tournament. I need to talk to the hat and have him sort Dudley into Slytherin so he can become friends with Malfoy. Then again, being muggle born he might not survive Slytherin. I need to think on that more, but there's not much time. The boy will be coming soon!'

Albus goes in search of Severus, to ensure Dudley will be safe in Slytherin. 'Where is that blasted man? He has been avoiding me more and more the past few months. I even saw him talking amicably with Lupin and Black the other day, I need to make sure that stops. The last thing we need is for them to get along.' Unable to find Severus, Albus decides to apparate to the Dursleys and see if he can stop them from sending Dudley to Hogwarts. From the side alley, he suddenly sees Harry, Severus, Remus and Sirius coming out of the house and apparating away. 'What in the blazes are they all doing here? And what is Severus doing with those three? I need to improve my compulsions if they are seeing each other and looking so amicably. Well, they have Dudley so there's definitely nothing to do now except go back to the school and wait for their arrival.'

***Jump in time to after Dudley's sorting. Dumbledore alone in his office.***

'Gryffindor?! How did that boy end up in Gryffindor! This is not good, not good at all. He'll be close to Harry, and if we're really unlucky they'll learn to get along! They seemed friendly, so I'm sure something happened while Harry was with Dudley to get his supplies. Why was Harry out of school anyway? Something is going on, and I need to find out what it is. That means keeping a closer eye on Harry, because that boy seems to know more about what's going on that he lets on. I'll just make sure he spends a lot of time in detention so he won't have so much time to find out things he's not supposed to find out. Yes, that's what I'll do. And Dudley will think Harry is just a troublemaker and will find other friends. It has to work. I also need to get a different Magical Guardian for Dudley, just in case Severus is getting close to Black and Lupin. Flitwick is impartial, he'll be a much better choice.'

*** Jump in time. Dumbledore's thoughts on Harry's power***

'That boy is entirely too powerful. I need to find out what happened over the summer for him to suddenly have access to his powers. Those bindings were extremely tight, and there is no way he could have broken through them on his own. At this point he is a danger to how things should be, as people will start following him instead of me when they find out about his power! I'm glad I punished him, even if it was an accident. He'll be busy in detention for a while, and hopefully it'll prevent him from showing his power again. Maybe I should try to advise him not using his powers. That might work, but it will have to wait until after he's done with his detentions. I also need to make sure Harry's solicitor doesn't find a way to get him out of the Tournament. I need the boy to be in that Tournament, it's how things are meant to play out. Where he found a solicitor so fast is a mystery, and it's a mystery I need to solve! The list regarding that boy is growing, and I don't have time for this. I need to find out how he found out about Dudley, how he broke his compulsions and bindings (because it's clear by now that he has), how Sirius, Remus and Severus play into all this, and how he has access to a solicitor by simply snapping his fingers.'

***End Dumbledore POV***

Harry's week was not going as he wanted. With detention every evening, and no broom to go flying in his free time, he is starting to get snappy with those around him. On top of that, he has extra Charms lessons and all his homework to keep up with. Viktor understood when Harry told him he can't fly for now, but Harry was still disappointed. On Saturday morning, while in Sirius' quarters working on homework, Severus walks in.

"Hi Harry, how are you this morning?"

"Just fine, absolutely brilliant," Harry replies in an angry tone.

Severus looks slightly taken aback, but recovers quickly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"No, something is clearly wrong. Now tell me."

"It's all this bloody work! I've done nothing all week besides go to class, do homework, go to extra Charms lessons, extra lessons with you guys and detention! I just need a moment of peace so just leave me the hell alone!" Harry bursts out before grabbing his things and storming to his room.

Severus looks after him, trying to keep his temper in check. It has been a while since Harry has spoken to him like that. It's clear Harry is stressed, but that outburst was uncalled for. He follows Harry to his room, where Harry is laying face down on his bed. He walks over and gives Harry a solid smack on his backside.

"Ow! What the hell?"

"Don't you ever talk to my like that again. It's alright to be upset or stressed out, but you will talk about it in a respectful tone. Is that clear?"

"Whatever," Harry says before turning his face back into his pillow.

"Would you care to change that answer? I'm losing my patience with you. You have been snapping at everyone for days, and it ends now. You are not the only one who's busy or who has detention and extra lessons. Now you are going to pick up your books from the floor and you are going to finish your homework. Then you'll have all afternoon to hang out with your friends and do something fun."

"Just sod off will you."

Severus decides that clearly Harry isn't willing to listen to reason. He picks Harry up off the bed under his arms, and as soon as he is standing lands two hard smack on Harry's backside. He then marches him over to his desk chair, and levitates his books to his desk. "You are going to sit here and do homework. When you are done, you are going to stay in this room the rest of the day and think about your attitude. Maybe a nap is a good idea. You may re-join your friends for dinner. And young man, if I find out you disobeyed me I will request to cover your detentions for the next week and you will be scrubbing the dungeons with a toothbrush, is that clear?"

Realizing that he shouldn't have lost his temper, and still smarting slightly from the smacks, Harry nods. "Yes sir."

Harry finishes his work for the next week before lunch, and after eating a sandwich he falls down on his bed. The sting from the smacks has long since disappeared, but he still remembers them clearly. His guardians don't smack easily, and Harry knows he has been pushing it for days. He feels guilty for making Severus angry enough to smack him when he was only trying to help. It doesn't take long for sleep to overcome him, and when Sirius comes in to wake him for dinner, he feels much better.

"Feel better pup?"

"I do. I'm sorry I've been so snappy."

"It's alright pup, we know you're under a lot of stress. Just try to come to us before you explode next time?"

Looking a little sheepish Harry nods. "I will."

"Good. Now I'm sure you're friends are waiting for you at dinner so you should head down. Filius said to stop by his office after dinner if you want your broom back."

Harry's mood visibly brightens at that, and he jumps up and runs out the door. Sirius walks out after him, and smiles at Remus. "He seems in a much better mood," Remus comments while holding the door open for Sirius.

"Much. I think getting smacked by Severus, followed by a long nap really helped."

"Hmm yes I remember a certain other someone who adjusts his attitude quickly after a smacking," Remus says with a slight grin towards Sirius.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I never have an attitude," Sirius says in mock seriousness.

Severus, who overhears Sirius' last comment while walking through the common area, chuckles. "It must be the other Sirius Black we know then."

Remus and Sirius both laugh. None of them fail to notice the calculating look the headmaster is giving them when they all walk into the Great Hall.

AN: I know this was a very short chapter. Work is at it's busiest time of the year, so updates are slower.


	32. Chapter 32

AN: if you have a problem with the spanking, you DON'T have to read! Don't read all 32 chapters and then suddenly leave a nasty review as a guest (so that I can't even reply to you personally). Nobody is forcing you to read, and if you are so against it, how did you make it through 32 chapters? It is in the disclaimer of the first chapter, so honestly, if you are against spanking in fanfiction (which is not a representation of real life, and does not indicate my views on spanking in real life), don't read a story with that disclaimer. Sorry for the rant but this is frustrating.

Chapter 32

On Sunday Harry finally has time, and a broom, to fly again and before breakfast he takes off through his bedroom window and towards the pitch. He knows it's dangerous, and he knows that if he's seen he'll get in trouble, but being up in the air feels amazing. Up in the air his problems don't exist. It's just him and his broom. He releases a practice snitch and starts chasing it. After catching it the fourth time he notices someone else chasing the snitch and grins at Viktor.

They fly for another hour before heading back towards the castle for breakfast. Harry banishes his broom back to his room, but he doesn't have enough time to shower and change so he simply casts a scourgify on himself. Harry and Viktor sit down next to Hermione at the Gryffindor table. "Good morning Hermione."

"Good morning. Have you two already been out on the pitch?"

"Yes. It felt so good to fly again. I'm glad it's Sunday so I don't have to worry about changing into my uniform."

Viktor smiles at Hermione. "We are required to wear our uniform on the weekends. I hope Karkarof doesn't see me."

"He wouldn't punish you, would he? We just came off the pitch!"

"Not wearing a uniform, especially at meals, is three with the paddle."

Hermione and Harry both look horrified. "He'd paddle you for not changing before coming to breakfast?"

Viktor just nods, before his eyes grow wide at the sight of his headmaster coming towards him. "Mr. Krum, my office after breakfast."

"Yes sir."

Hermione looks sympathetic. "I'm sorry Viktor, that's just awful."

"It's alright Hermione. Karkarof likes me, he doesn't hit as hard."

"If you get three with the paddle for something as simple as your clothes, I don't want to know what happened to Nicholas."

"He got thirty and Karkarof doesn't like him. He hurt for days. He shouldn't have provoked you. Are you going to the common room later?"

Harry shakes his head. "I have family day with my guardians after lunch, and I'm going to the library to do homework before then."

"I'll join you Harry. Have you done that Charms essay yet?"

"Yes, I've finished it but Professor Flitwick gave me extra work to do so I have another essay to do for Charms that I haven't started yet."

"Why do you have extra work?"

"Professor Flitwick feels that I need it. I'm going up to change and then I'll meet you there."

Harry walks out of the Great Hall without having eaten much. He doesn't know how else to answer those questions but knows if he stays Hermione will ask more. He hopes his answer was enough to curve her curiosity. When he walks into his room in Sirius' quarters, where he knows he left his Charms books, he hears a hex coming from behind but throws up his shield a second too late. A sting erupts in his backside and he quickly reaches back before turning around.

"What was that all about?"

"Just testing your reflexes. You have gotten a lot better since we started practicing in your lessons. You almost got your shield up in time. There's no better way to test your reflexes than by randomly hexing you, and I felt a stinging hex was appropriate after you basically skipped breakfast," Sirius says with a pointed look.

"I was there and I ate."

"You had two bites of egg and maybe some bacon. You need to eat more Harry. I'm assuming you're here to shower and change, but after you do so I expect you in the kitchen for more food."

Harry sighs before heading to the bathroom. He knows arguing is pointless, and he has to admit he's still hungry. When he makes his way to the kitchen half an hour later, it is to find Severus and Remus there along with Sirius. Sirius points to Harry's seat, where a plate full of food is already waiting for him, and he sits down.

"Have you guys given any more thought to the headmaster being suspicious of Severus yet?" he asks between bites.

"We have. We will talk about it when you are done eating."

"I have to go to the library to meet Hermione. Can we talk about it this afternoon?"

"Send a note to Hermione, you're staying here the remainder of the day."

"What? Why?"

"Did you forget you disobeyed me by not eating breakfast?" Sirius asks with a raised eyebrow.

"I ate something!"

"You know perfectly well we expect you to eat a full meal."

Harry glares at Sirius before turning hopeful looks to Remus and Severus. Seeing that he won't get any help from either of them he goes back to eating, all the while glaring at his plate.

When he is done eating and his plate disappears, he decides to try again. "Can I please go to the library? I have to finish my essay for Flitwick and I need library books."

"Professor Flitwick. What book do you need?"

"How am I suppose to know? I'd have to go look in the library to find out," Harry snaps back at Sirius. He's irritated that he's basically grounded, even if it's only for a few hours as he was going to be in here after lunch anyway.

"Drop the attitude. I will get you all the books you need if you tell me what your essay is about. Is it the one about the summoning charm?"

"No, I finished that already. This is the extra essay I have to do. I have to write about Obliviate and Confundo and when I'd use one as opposed to the other. Basically I just have to explain what each charm does, which I already know since Obliviate alters someone's memory and Confundo just confuses them, but I also have to explain the mechanics behind them and then compare."

"I'm impressed he's having you do those already. Both are seventh year charms. I will get you all the books I can find on that, and while I'm there I will let Hermione know where you are. I will even take the blame."

Harry sighs. "Thanks. I don't want her to think I'm standing her up. Also, she doesn't know what my extra essay is about and please don't tell her. She thinks Professor Flitwick is just giving me extra help, she doesn't know I'm doing advanced work."

"Alright. I'll go do that while you guys talk about the headmaster. I'll be back."

"Severus, do you think the headmaster suspects that you don't hate me as much anymore?" Harry asks.

"I'm not sure. It's obvious he's suspicious of my friendship with Sirius and Remus. I don't think, however, that he suspects that I don't hate you as much. I do think he's worried that my friendship with Sirius and Remus will allow me to see a different side to you and change my perspective. He called me to his office for tea yesterday, and I couldn't drink it because it was spiked with something. I pretended to drink it while casting mild banishing charms simultaneously. I don't know what he spiked it with, but I have a feeling its some kind of potion that's directed towards you. He said he was pleased that Sirius, Remus and I have put aside our differences. I don't think he was honest but that also makes me think he isn't going to actively try to change it."

"That's good, right? This way you can still be seen with them without raising suspicion."

"Yes, it's good. However, it also means he'll likely be watching me more carefully and it also means we know for sure he's trying to give us potions. Besides that potion he asked me to make last time, he hasn't asked me to make any others so I really have no way of telling what it was. There is a charm that will allow me to banish it to a certain place, but I haven't mastered it wandless and wordless yet. I've been practicing so that next time I can banish the tea to a vial in my lab so I can test it. Until then, please be extra careful in making sure you cast your charms. Same for you Remus."

Both Harry and Remus nod. "I'll be careful. I sometimes forget when I'm distracted but I'll pay more attention," Harry says.

Severus scowls at Harry. "Young man you better be casting it every time or we'll have to get you tested to Gringotts regularly to see if you've taken in anything. I can tell you now that if we get you tested and we find more compulsion you will be very grounded while writing essays on every compulsion they find, is that clear?"

Harry, who knows he needs to be more careful, nods. "I understand. I know I need to be more careful."

"More careful about what?" Sirius asks while walking in.

"Harry apparently doesn't always cast his detection charms. I told him if we find any compulsions he'll be very grounded while writing essays on every compulsion found."

"Ahh. Do you think we should have him tested now?"

Severus, Remus and Sirius look at each other before looking at Harry. "How often have you forgotten Harry?" Severus asks.

Harry, face bright red, looks at his hands and mumbles something. "Look up and speak up Harry."

"At least once a day."

Harry hears three sharp inhales of breath and doesn't dare look up. He is pulled off his chair and propelled in the direction of the fireplace with a sharp smack. "Let's go, we're going to Gringotts," he hears Severus say. Before Harry realizes what's happening he is at Gringotts. Severus is now wearing a glamour and is still holding him by the arm. Sirius and Remus arrive right behind him.

They walk up to the nearest goblin. "We need to see Healer Thag please."

They are soon shown to the same exam room they were in before and are met there by the healer. "What can I help you gentlemen with?"

"Mr. Potter here decided not to cast detection charms each time he ate or drank something. We need him tested for compulsions. Again," Severus sneers.

Healer Thag looks at Harry sternly. "Lord Potter-Black, please have a seat on the table."

Harry sits down, and soon he has taken the potion. It goes much faster than last time, but to his horror the Healer finds two compulsions. "I can remove these fairly easily. They aren't very strong yet, they are the kind that need to build up in your system. One is to create a hatred towards Slytherins and one affects your self preservation abilities. Please lay back so I can remove them. Drink this potion."

Severus, Remus and Sirius have remained silent, but both Remus and Sirius can see the storm building behind Severus' eyes. The controlled potion Severus gave the headmaster is exactly the potion Harry has in his system, and the reason Harry learned the detection charms to begin with. They know Harry is in for a big lecture as soon as he wakes up again.

When the compulsions are removed, and everything is documented and put in their vaults, they head back to the floo to head back to Hogwarts. They know the only reason Harry was able to floo out of the castle was because Severus, as Head of House, was holding him so that is how they get back.

"Put your nose in a corner and stay there until I tell you otherwise," Severus snaps at Harry. He knows he needs to calm his temper before dealing with the boy. Sirius and Remus silently sit down on the couch. It takes a good twenty minutes before Severus has calmed down enough.

"Harry, sit down."

Harry wearily walks over to one of the arm chairs and sits down. He is fully aware that he's in trouble and it shows on his face.

"Why did we teach you the detection charms?"

"Because we knew the headmaster had a potion he planned to use on me."

"And yet you ate half your meals without casting them. Do you enjoy acting against your will?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't think."

"That is very clear. And you likely got those potions in your system one of the first times you forgot to cast the charms, and after that the compulsions made you forget more often. What did I tell you your punishment would be if we found compulsions?"

"Grounding and essays," Harry says, looking at his knees.

"Look at me. I really hope we will not have a repeat of this. If any more compulsions are found because you forgot to cast the charms, I will ensure you are too sore to sit down for a week. If you are ever in a situation where you have cast the charms but can't get around taking the potion anyway, you will inform me immediately and we can fix it. For now, you are grounded for two weeks. I expect essays on the two compulsions by the end of those two weeks. You will not eat or drink anything outside of the Great Hall or these quarters, and you had better cast charms on everything. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir."

"You may go to your room and do your charms essay. I believe that's where Sirius put all the books he got from the library."

Harry quietly gets up and goes to his room, closing the door softly behind him. Severus sits down in the now vacant armchair and pinches the bridge of his nose. "One of these days I'm going to strangle that boy."

Sirius chuckles softly. "He's fourteen Severus. Thinking about consequences isn't exactly his strong suit. Trust me, being grounded for two weeks will make him think more. And with those punishment essays on top of his regular work he'll be plenty busy."

"I know. I'm sorry I grounded him to your rooms without checking with you first."

"We would have grounded him just as much Severus, so don't worry about it. I'm surprised you didn't spank him."

"I think the grounding and essays will get to him more. I really don't want to ever have to spank him if I can avoid it."

"I don't think any of us ever want to spank him, but sometimes it's effective. The grounding will definitely make an impression. And if you feel bad about sticking him with us you are welcome to spend time here with him."

"Filius asked me to cover his last week of detentions so he'll be seeing plenty of me already. I'm sure I'm not his favorite person right now. In fact, he probably hates me for being so strict."

"I don't hate you," Harry says softly from the doorway. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I was just coming out to get a drink from the kitchen."

"It's alright Harry. And I'm sure you're not happy with me."

"I'm not, but I think that's a normal reaction after you just grounded me for two weeks. I think I'd rather get spanked and be allowed to hang out with my friends and fly. That doesn't mean I hate you though, because I don't." Harry demonstrates this by walking over to Severus and giving him a quick hug before walking to the kitchen.

Once Harry is back in his room Severus turns to Sirius and Remus. "Did he just say he'd rather get a spanking?"

Remus laughs. "For someone as active as Harry, not being allowed to run around with his friends is true punishment. He's not saying he wants a spanking, but a spanking is over and by tomorrow he won't feel it anymore while the grounded will affect him for two weeks. For someone like Hermione, a true punishment would be a library ban. That's why punishments should be adjusted based on the situation and the person, not be uniform across the board."

"And it's why a spanking has always worked better for me than grounding or removal of privileges ever did. I might not enjoy not being allowed to go places, but I can entertain myself perfectly well by myself. I love flying, but not enough that not having my broom for a period of time is going to make a difference. But I despise having to bend over for a spanking and will go a long way to avoid it. Remus figured that out early on, while Minerva thought taking away my broom was being strict," Sirius says.

"Slughorn never understood punishments either. He thought preparing potions ingredients was punishment for me. In reality the worst punishment I could get is being banned from the potions lab. Slughorn never grounded any of us, but that would be a strict punishment for me because it would mean I couldn't work on potions or do research for them."

Remus nods. "Exactly. For me a library ban would be true punishment. Even when Minerva grounded us we were still allowed to go to the library to do homework so I would just spend all my time there. That's why it's different for everyone. Detention has never worked for Harry, I noticed that early on. He's had to do so much manual labor at the Dursleys over the years that spending a few hours cleaning something doesn't face him. Well, I need to get some grading done. What's on the schedule for this afternoon?"

"Lord Peterson is coming over for some lesson on Magical Law."

"That works out well. I have a lot of grading left to do so that will let me finish that before dinner and we can all play games or something after dinner. Maybe Lord Peterson will have made progress on Harry's entry into the Tournament. Severus, are you staying or leaving?"

"I need to do grading as well, so I'm going to do that in the common area. I will be back after dinner."

Soon everyone is working on their own things. When it's time for lunch Harry heads down to the Great Hall. He sits down with Viktor, who to his surprise is sitting with Hermione at the Gryffindor table."

"Hi guys."

"Hi Harry. Where have you been all morning?"

"In our quarters. Didn't Sirius tell you?"

"He said he was making you do your essay in his quarters instead of the library but he didn't say why."

"I got grounded for the morning because I didn't really eat at breakfast and I'm not supposed to skip meals. Then they found out that I sometimes forget to cast my detection charms so now I'm grounded for two weeks."

"That's not good Harry. Those charms are important. Karkarof is strict if I forget to cast mine, I learned quickly," Viktor says, looking sympathetic.

"Mr. Potter, your guardian has informed me you will not be staying in your room the next two weeks?"

Harry looks around to see Professor Flitwick standing behind him. "That is correct sir."

"Very well, I won't perform your room check then. Also, I have re-assigned this week's detention to Professor Snape."

"Yes sir."

Once Harry turns back around he puts his arms on the table and lays his head on it, right as Dudley sits down next to him. "You alright Harry?"

"I just want to go hide in my room and never come out. Maybe then my life would be easier and I'd stay out of trouble."

"What happened?"

"I still have a week detention with Professor Snape and I'm grounded for two weeks."

"Ouch. I just got detention with Filch. I'm slightly scared."

Harry looks up at Dudley. "What did you do?"

"Malfoy cornered me in the hallway. Said that he'd heard rumors that I was a bully to you growing up. Offered his friendship and said I'd be much better off being friends with him instead of Gryffindors or Hufflepufs. I told him I wasn't interested and that I like my friends. We got into an argument. Professor Snape caught us right before we actually started to fight and we both have detention with Filch after lunch."

Harry sighs. "I had a feeling he'd come after you at some point. Just watch your back. And I guess you'll finally learn to clean."

Dudley grimaces. "I know. I'm not looking forward to it. I suppose it was bound to happen at some point. It's still better than Smeltings ever was."

"Did you finish your Charms essay Harry?" Hermione asks.

"Yeah I did. It's on Sirius' desk to check. That was the last assignment I had for this coming week. I'm glad to be done."

Hermione nods. "I finished mine too. I might do some reading this afternoon."

"Would you like to go for a walk by the lake?" Viktor asks her. Harry notices the slight flush that's creeping up Hermione's neck.

"I'd like that, it's nice out. Thank you Viktor."

"Take someone else with you please," Harry says, trying to contain his smirk. He's had a feeling Viktor is interested in Hermione and this just confirms it.

Viktor nods. "It's good to be in groups. You should bring a friend, I will bring someone too."

Hermione nods and quickly walks over to the Ravenclaw table. Helena agrees to join them on their walk, and soon the group of four depart the Great Hall. Harry knows he can't stall any longer and heads back to their quarters only to find Lord Peterson there.

"Lord Peterson! I wasn't expecting you here."

"I had a feeling Sirius didn't tell you. We are going to go over Wizarding Law today. Before you ask, I haven't found out anything yet regarding the Tournament. I hear you made a trip to Gringotts earlier today?"

Harry sits down with a sigh. "I got in trouble."

"What does that have to do with Gringotts?"

"I forgot to cast my detection charms several times and I had to get tested for compulsion, after which the healer had to remove several."

Lord Peterson's smile quickly turns stern. "That is very reckless. I'm sure I'll find the documentation in your file next time I open it. Promise me you'll be more careful."

"I promise. I know it was stupid. Severus is making sure I know by grounding me for two weeks," Harry says, feeling his ears burn at the scolding.

"Good."

"Ahh, Lord Peterson I see you've made it!" Sirius says while walking in.

"Mr. Black. We were just catching up on Harry's latest adventures."

"Ahh. Maybe you would like to include the legal aspects of compulsion in today's lesson? Harry might find it useful for his essays."

"And what essays would those be Harry?"

Harry glares at Sirius. "As part of my punishment I have to write an essay on each of the compulsions found earlier today."

"Ahh. Well I'm sure I will be able to provide some useful information. Harry, I've been requested to teach you about Wizarding Law today. Why don't you go get parchment and a quill so you can take notes."

When Harry is out of the room Lord Peterson turns to Sirius. "I've really started to care for Harry. He's such a brave, strong and kind young man. Hearing that he was under compulsions again makes me furious. Both at the person who gave them to him as at Harry. I don't know where it's coming from but I feel the urge to lecture him something fierce."

Sirius smiles softly. "It's easy to care when it comes to Harry. And it's because you care that you want to make it clear that he acted foolishly. I will not stop you if you want to do so. I think sometimes he forgets there are people who care, and being reminded often won't hurt him. I will leave you to your lessons. I'll be in the study with Remus, let me know if you need me."

Harry walks back in and takes a seat on the floor by the coffee table, making it easier to write and take notes.

"Harry, I know I'm not your guardian or parent," Lord Peterson starts. Harry looks down at the floor. He had expected a scolding after having been interrupted by Sirius earlier. He cares about Lord Peterson's opinion and the last thing he wants is to disappoint the man. "However, I care about you. I care what happens to you. You are an incredible young man. You are caring, you have an incredible amount of love for others, and you are brave beyond measure. The one thing you lack is a value for your own life. You would step in front of a curse meant for someone else, you would take the blame for something you didn't do if it meant protecting a friend. But you forget there are those who care about you, who would be heartbroken if something happened to you. When you are asked to do something to protect yourself, you have to take that seriously. I know it's not always the easiest or most fun thing to do, but you have to trust that we want what's best for you. Don't put so little value on your own life. All these extra lessons are to help you. You are emancipated and so legally and financially you can make your own decisions but you are fourteen. You have guardians who love you and who want you to live as normally as possible considering the circumstances. They are making sure you can act your age, but they will reign you in when you cross the line. Don't make their job of protecting you harder by disregarding their rules or ignoring their advice. Casting the charms takes a few seconds, but it shows that you value your life and that you value their opinion and guidance."

Harry keeps looking at the floor during the lecture. "I know and I'm sorry. I care about your opinion. I know I disappointed you by not casting my charms. I love having Sirius, Remus and Severus here as my guardians. It allows me to forget that I'm not a normal teenager, and allows me to pretend that I am. I hate getting punished, but the knowledge that I disappointed them enough to get punished is worse. They put so much time and effort into helping me become a better wizard and prepare me for life as a four-time Lord, and yet I keep getting in trouble. I've never had anyone care whether I was out after curfew, or cast detection charms on my food or put myself in danger. It's taking a lot to get used to. I know I'm emancipated, but I'm only using that for legal or financial things. I want to have guardians, and as much as I hate being grounded it also shows that there is someone to catch me when I make a mistake. I'm fourteen, I can't do it by myself. You aren't my guardian or parent, but I value your opinion. You've been there for me from the moment I talked to you the first time. I promise to do better."

"I know it's a lot to get used to and you have a lot going on in your life. Just trust in your guardians to help you in the right direction. Now I've said what I've wanted to say so we'll forget about it all. Let's start your lesson on Wizarding Law. Today we'll cover the legal workings of the Wizengamot and go over the general legal system. If we have time we'll cover some laws that I think will be useful to you."

With that Lord Peterson starts his lesson. Before Harry realizes it, it's time for dinner and Sirius and Remus walk out of their study. "Are you staying for dinner?" Sirius asks Lord Peterson.

"No, I have to get home to my family. Thank you for the offer though. Harry, we will continue this lesson some other day. Keep those notes and study them, I will quiz you on them next time to ensure you've retained the information."

"Yes sir. How old are your children?"

"My son Eric is ten, he'll be at Hogwarts next year. My daughter Lisa is nine. Both are home schooled by my wife."

"I look forward to showing him the secrets to life at Hogwarts, and ensure he has access to lots of pranking material," Harry says jokingly.

Lord Peterson laughs. "Young man, my son finds enough trouble on his own. I don't think he needs your influence or help."

Harry grins. "Then maybe they need the experience of the Weasley Twins."

"How about next time we all have dinner together after your lesson and you can meet them? They don't know I'm your sollicitor but Eric has already mentioned that he's excited to meet you next year."

"How about you continue your lesson next week and then we join you for dinner?" Sirius suggests.

"That works for me. Now I really need to get going before my wife wonders where I am. I'll see you all next week. Please extend the invitation to Severus as well."

Once Lord Peterson has disappeared through the fireplace Harry takes his notes to his room before leaving for dinner with Sirius and Remus. "That lesson was amazing Sirius. I loved learning about all the legal workings of the Wizarding World. It also helps me understand a lot of things a lot better, and the way Lord Peterson explains it makes it interesting as opposed to boring."

"I'm glad Harry. You make sure to study those notes for next week."

"I will. Bye!" Harry says before sitting down at the Ravenclaw table with Luna.

"Hi Luna. How has your weekend been?"

"Wonderful Harry. I heard you got into a bit of trouble during yours."

"News travels fast. Yes I did but it's alright now."

"That's good. Do you think Hermione and Viktor will start dating soon?"

Harry chuckles. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed. I'm sure they will at some point but if he's serious he needs to start spending more time in the library."

"Who needs to spend more time in the library?" Viktor says while sitting across from them.

"You if you are serious about dating Hermione."

Viktor looks slightly shocked. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't think I haven't noticed. And if she was here you'd have sat down with her instead of me. Just so you know, if you hurt her you'll have to deal with me. She's like a sister to me."

Viktor nods slowly. He knows that threat is real and he has no intention of ever coming across and angry Harry. "I'll keep that in mind. So you think she's in the library?"

"Probably. She's usually the first one at meals so when she's not here she got caught up in a book. What you should do is eat quickly, make an extra plate of food and put preservation and warming charms on it, then take that plate to the library for her. Maybe offer to help with whatever it is she's researching."

Harry and Luna share an amused look when Viktor starts eating quickly before taking off with a plate of food. "Would you make a plate of food for me Harry if I wasn't here?"

Harry looks at Luna in surprise. "If I knew you weren't here, yes I would. Nobody should have to miss meals."

"That is good to know. Next time you skip a meal I'll make sure to bring you food."

"Thank you Luna. I'm not sure you're allowed in the teacher's wing though if that's where I'm at."

"I'm sure if I tell them I come to bring food for Harry Potter I'm allowed in anywhere."

"You might have a valid point there."

The next day in Charms Harry masters the banishing and summoning charms with ease, and Professor Flitwick conjures a dummy for Harry to practice his Confundo and Obliviate on. Hermione looks at him in suspicion, and he notices Ron giving him look as well. Finally Hermione can't stand it anymore. "Harry, how did you already know those Charms and how did Professor Flitwick know to have other Charms ready for you to practice?"

"Professor Flitwick is my Head of House and he told me to stop holding back in class."

"You were holding back?"

Harry nods.

"Well I'm glad you're not anymore. You should always do your best."

Harry looks slightly shocked. "Harry, were you worried I'd be upset if you did better than me?"

Harry looks sheepish before nodding. "Oh Harry. I'm your friend, I'd never be upset over something like that! Yes I love being first in class but if you are truly better I didn't earn that spot. You should do your best in all your classes."

"Show off. Probably getting extra help outside of class so he can show off for the Tournament," Ron says from behind them.

Both Hermione and Harry turn around. "What is your problem Ron? If you knew me at all you'd know I'd never want to be in the Tournament. I can't help it you are jealous but I don't want to be in the Tournament and I'm doing my best to get out of it."

"Yeah right. That's just a ploy to get the others to underestimate you. You want to be in the Tournament and you found a way and you wouldn't even share it with me."

"That's not true. I don't want to be in it so there was nothing to share."

Before Ron can reply Professor Flitwick has joined them. "Gentleman, is there a problem over here?"

"No sir."

"Then I expect you both to return to practicing. You will lose points should I have to come over here again."

With a last glance at Hermione Harry turns back to his dummy and continues practicing. While he can't truly confund or obliviate the dummy, the dummy is charmed to glow red or green depending on whether the charm was cast correctly or not. It doesn't escape Hermione, Ron or Professor Flitwick's notice that Harry's dummy has consistently turned green.

After Harry's class lets out, Professor Flitwick asks Harry to stay behind. "Harry, I'd like to have a meeting with you and your guardians. Could you please inform them I will be stopping by their quarters after dinner this evening?"

"Yes sir. Am I in trouble? Is this about us talking earlier?"

"No, you are not in trouble. There is just something that I'd like to discuss. There is nothing for you to worry about."

"Alright sir, I'll let them know. I'd better head to lunch before someone reports me missing."

Once Harry has eaten lunch he walks up to the Head Table when he sees the headmaster missing and Sirius, Remus and Severus are the only teachers on their end of the table. "Sirius, Professor Flitwick asked me to let you know that he will be stopping by after dinner this evening for a meeting with me and you guys. I don't know what it's about but he says I'm not in trouble."

"Alright thank you Harry. We will be there."

Once Harry leaves the three share a look that indicates they are curious what this is about, and Severus decides he's going to make sure to be there as well.

Meanwhile Harry is worried. He knows he was told not to worry, but generally it's not a good thing when a professor requests to meet with your guardians. It is therefore an incredibly nervous Harry who eats dinner quickly before pacing in the living room of their quarters. When Severus comes through the floo before the others arrive, he grabs Harry by the shoulders and steers him towards the couch before sitting down next to him with his arm around his shoulders to help keep him calm. "Harry, you said yourself you weren't in trouble. This is nothing to be nervous about. I'm sure everything is fine."

Comforted by the arm around his shoulder, Harry leans into Severus slightly. It is helping him calm down, and that is how the others find them. Filius smiles at seeing Harry so at ease with Severus. "Severus, I'm not entirely surprised to find you here. I'm assuming you've already cast the necessary privacy charms?"

"Of course Filius. They are permanently on these quarters."

"Excellent. Harry I can see you are nervous but you have no reason to be. The reason I called this meeting is to discuss your progress in class. Not only are you mastering the fourth year charms with ease, today I noticed your dummy flared green even on the first try. Severus, Remus, Sirius, I had Harry do Confundo and Obliviate on a dummy while the rest of the cast practiced summoning and banishing which Harry had already mastered."

"Harry, you got those right on the first try? That is incredible. Most Seventh Years don't get those on the first try," Sirius says in amazement.

Harry looks uncomfortable. "I didn't get it on the first try," he says softly.

"What do you mean Harry? I was watching you in class," Filius says.

"When I was writing my essay I tried it a few times."

"Explain." Remus says sternly. "You are well aware you are not allowed to practice new spells unsupervised."

"I only tried a handful of times and I didn't try it on people or a dummy, just in the air to get the wand movements right."

"So you didn't know if it worked?" Filius asks.

"No, and it really was only three or four tries."

"Harry, this is your last warning not to try spells unsupervised, especially advanced spells like those. If you want to practice, ask one of us to be in the room," Remus says sternly.

"Harry, even three or four tries is impressive and for all you know you could have gotten it right the first try. The reason I'm even bringing this up is because I feel that you are still not being challenged enough. I'm going to continue running you through advanced spells in Charms, but if this is how you are in Charms I'm wondering if you need more advanced work in other classes as well. I'm going to continue with the regular Hogwarts curriculum in Charms, but I want you tested in your other classes."

"I don't want more extra lessons. I already have very little free time," Harry scowls.

"The headmaster won't allow professors to give advanced lessons to any students. However, he can't do anything against me and your guardians are allowed to teach you whatever they want. He can't control what parents teach their children."

"I don't want any more lessons."

"Harry, don't you want to learn as much as you can?" Severus asks.

Harry looks sideways to Severus. "I do but I'm also fourteen and want to hang out with my friends. I already have extra lessons with you guys three times a week and extra Charms twice a week."

"What if we cancelled the extra Charms and instead you did a different class? I think I can teach you all the extra Charms you might need during the regular class practicals. You could start with extra DADA and maybe extra Potions after that?"

"We already do Arithmancy on Tuesdays and extra DADA on Thursdays. On Sundays it's a mixture of whatever we think is needed. What if we did extra Potions on Wednesdays?" Sirius says.

Harry just continues glaring. Filius sighs. "Look, I'm not requiring it, but I like to see my students challenged in their studies. Harry, your power levels are through the roof and you are very intelligent. Your extra Charms essays are very high quality and I think you can learn anything you put your mind to."

Seeing that they aren't going to come to a decision, Severus decides to end the meeting. "Filius, we appreciate you coming to us with this. Would you mind letting us discuss this before deciding anything?"

"That's perfectly fine. I will see you all tomorrow," Filius says before taking his leave.

Harry tries to get up and go to his room but Severus grabs him by the back of his trousers and pulls him back onto the couch. "Not so fast. Why don't you try to explain why you are against one more extra lesson a week. I know it's not because of your friends. What are you trying to hide?"

"I don't want extra Potions."

"Why not? Doing it this way you will have an extra free day because instead of 2 Charms lessons you get 1 Potions lesson a week."

"I know. And I'm glad to have extra free time. But I don't want to do extra Potions. How is that going to help me?"

"Potions are incredibly useful. What are you nervous about?"

Harry remains quiet so Severus nudges him. "Look, I know I've gotten better at Potions and you aren't as scary anymore in class. This summer really helped, but it still makes me nervous to brew Potions around you."

Severus turns Harry so he can look him in the face. "Harry, I understand why it makes you nervous and I can see it in class. I know the first three years of Potions really made an impression, but it is important you learn. I promise the extra lessons would be just like this summer was. There will be no pressure and we will take our time. You don't have to give your answer now, but think about it at least."

"I know I need to learn more Potions, especially healing potions. Can we try but if it doesn't work out stop?"

"Yes, that is acceptable but I want you to give it an honest try, alright?"

"Are you going to give me homework?"

"What do you think?" Severus asks with an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, dumb question. I really do appreciate all the extra lessons. I know they are to make me a better wizard, and I do enjoy learning all of it. I still have a lot of free time to hang out with friends. Since I agreed to the extra Potions, can I be ungrounded?" Harry asks with a hopeful look.

Sirius and Remus share an amused look. "Nice try Harry but no, you are still very much grounded," Severus says, trying to keep the amusement out of his voice.

"It was worth a try," Harry says. "I suppose I better go do homework."

Once Harry is out of the room Severus sighs. "I don't know how to make him more comfortable in the lab. He was fine this summer when it was just the two of us, but I've noticed in class he's not as calm. He still does well so I haven't said anything."

"If he did fine when it was just the two of you over the summer, I'm sure these lessons will be fine as well. I agree he needs to learn more potions. It will come in useful when he doesn't have to rely on someone else for all his potions."

"I will do my best to make him feel comfortable. I'm going to start with healing potions that we haven't covered in class yet or that I think he needs extra practice in. If I notice that he is becoming overwhelmed with work or that these extra lessons are achieving the opposite of what we want to achieve, I'll be the first to cancel them. But I'm glad he's willing to try. I need to go check with him when he wants to do an extra Occlumency lesson. We really need to ensure he doesn't have any more emotional outbursts."

Severus walks into Harry's room to see him engrossed in a textbook. He sits down on Harry's bed. "Harry, could you stop for a minute?"

"Hold on, let me finish this section before I forget my train of thought."

Severus watches Harry finish reading the section before taking notes on it. When he finishes, he turns around to look at Severus. "What essay are you working on?"

"Yours but I got sidetracked."

"How did you get sidetracked reading about the magical properties of Lacewing Flies?"

"Well you know how the essay is about the magical properties of Lacewing Flies, and what ingredients would enhance it and what would make it poisonous? The other day I came across this old book in the library that talks about this, but it also mentions how the magical properties are different depending on when you collect them. I'm sure you know this already though."

"I do, but how did that get you distracted? While that is more in depth than I had intended that essay to be, it's not straying from the original assignment."

"Well, this is probably stupid, and you're going to think I'm an idiot but I was thinking about how Lacewing Flies are used in Wolfsbane. If the Lacewing Flies are collected during the Full Moon, wouldn't that make them much more potent. This book says the closer to the Full Moon they are collected, the more potent they are so what if they are collected during the Full Moon, wouldn't that make them the best. And since Lacewing Flies in Wolfsbane are intended to act as a sort of sedative so the wolf doesn't injure the wizard, and recovery is shorter, wouldn't that improve the Wolfsbane?"

"When did you research the Wolfsbane? It's not covered under the normal Hogwarts curriculum."

"I read up on it earlier in the term."

"I see. I have to say I'm impressed by your analytical thinking. You took something you read and changed it to apply to something you care about. I take it you want to make the Full Moon easier on Remus?"

"I do. I hate seeing him hurt and confined to bed the day after. My idea is probably stupid though."

"Harry, when it comes to potions, this is the kind of thinking that improves them or even creates new ones. Your idea is not stupid. I'm constantly trying to improve the Wolfsbane, but since I can only test certain effects once a month and I don't want to change more than one thing at a time because then I won't know what part worked and what didn't, the progress is slow. I had considered the effects of the Lacewing Flies but until now my focus had been on making a werewolf safer to those around him during the Moon. I'm at the stage in this month's Wolfsbane where I need to add the Lacewing Flies and I have some that were collected during the Full Moon. I will add them and see what effect it has during the next Moon. If it improves the potion, I will give you all the credit for it. However, you need to finish that essay before you have a very displeased Potions Master when you can't hand it in," Severus finishes with a wink.

Harry laughs. "Oh I'm sure. He might use me as potions ingredients. So what did you really come in here for?"

"We still need to schedule an extra Occlumency lesson that focuses on how you can calm yourself should you have another emotional outburst. I was thinking tomorrow evening, but I wanted to check with you."

"I don't know if I have time. Between detention and extra lessons I need all my time to stay on top of my homework."

"How about we do it during detention?"

"I suppose that would work. And just to warn you, once we've done this lesson I will occasionally test your barriers. If that means doing something to make you angry then I will just to see if your shields hold up, alright?"

"Alright. I really do need to get back to this essay, I still have a DADA one to finish as well."

"Very well, I'll leave you to it. Goodnight Harry."

"Goodnight Severus."

"So, did you get him to agree to more extra lessons?" Remus asks. "You were in there for a while but I didn't hear any shouting."

"He was actually researching something that might improve the Wolfsbane so we talked about that a little bit. As usual I'll be asking you questions after the Full Moon to see if it made a difference. I agreed to do the extra lesson during detention tomorrow since he made a valid point that he needs all his time to do school work when he's not in detention or extra lessons."

"He researched the Wolfsbane?" Remus asks, feeling a tugging at his heart.

"He apparently did. And while doing his homework assignment for Potions he came across something which he then adapted to maybe make the Wolfsbane better."

Remus suddenly stands up, walks into Harry's room and gives him a strong hug from behind. Harry yelps at the sudden hug, before turning around. "I love you cub, I hope you know that."

Remus walks back out, leaving behind a baffled Harry. When Remus sits back down, Sirius and Severus share a knowing look. "So we need to think of ways to help Harry prepare for the Tournament, just in case he has to compete," Sirius says.

"I wish there was a way to find out what the first task is, but I'm not sure there is."

"Well the first task is in two weeks, right? We can all discreetly try to find out, and I'm sure Ms. Granger is already researching prior Tournaments to see what the common theme was," Severus says. "Until then, we need to teach him a broad spectrum of skills that might be useful. I need to go finish up some grading."

The next evening Harry shows up in the potions classroom for detention, only to be shown through to Severus' quarters. Harry has never been there before and is looking around in interest before Severus steers him away from the bookshelf and towards the couch. "I'm sure my books are fascinating but you are here to learn something. Now I want you to close your eyes and focus on breathing evenly and deeply."

Harry closes his eyes and tries to focus on his breathing. Once Severus is satisfied, he continues. "Now focus all your thoughts behind your shields. If you need something to get you angry to practice, think about Malfoy attempting to sabotage your potion earlier today."

It seems to work as Severus sees Harry's temper start to flare before being pushed behind his shields. "Now continue breathing deeply until you feel you have your emotions under control. Once you've done that, open your eyes."

When Harry opens his eyes he sees Severus sitting on the coffee table right in front of him. "Did I do it right?"

"Yes you did. That is what you want to do whenever you feel your emotions get out of control. Off course eventually you'll learn to do it quickly, but for now even doing it this slowly will help. Once you are experienced in this you'll be able to squash down your emotions before they even start to show. Now I'm going to make it clear that I do not want you to ever do that in front of us, as it's important to let go of your emotions occasionally. Pushing everything behind shields all the time will exhaust you and make them less strong. You might consider dropping your shields when you are alone in your bedroom at night. It will allow your mind to rest. Now I want you to sit here and continue doing what you just did. Think of situations that make you angry or sad, and then use the exercise to force those emotions behind your shields."

Harry thinks about Ron's argument in Charms the day before and his anger flares. Before it gets out of control he pushes it behind his shields and immediately he feels calmer. Severus raises his eyebrow at the spike of anger, as it showed very clearly how powerful Harry is. He decides any further lessons should be held somewhere with less breakable and valuable items, just in case Harry does lose his temper.

When Harry has succeeded several more times, Severus stops him. "Very well done Harry. We're going to stop for tonight because we don't want to exhaust your mind. Consider your detention over, which means you can head upstairs and still have your Arithmancy lesson for tonight."

Harry sighs. "Alright. Thanks Severus."

"Hold on Harry. Are you alright?" Severus asks with concern.

"I'm fine. I haven't been sleeping well and I'm just exhausted. It'll be alright though."

"I'll bring you up some sleeping potions to help. It's important you get a good night's sleep. Do you know why you're having a hard time sleeping?"

"I suppose it's just everything that's going on. Ron acting like a git and basically stabbing me in the back, the Tournament, the Emancipation, the Headmaster, the extra lessons. It's just everything."

Severus steps towards Harry and pulls him into a strong hug. Harry puts his arms around Severus, grateful to be held for a moment. They stand like that for several minutes before Severus starts talking, without letting go of the hug. He knows Harry needs the comfort and reassurance. "Harry, you are one of the bravest, strongest wizard I know. You have never had an easy life only to come to Hogwarts and face death every year. Now you have us, but you are still dealing with more than anyone should have to deal with at once, especially at your age. Just know that we are here for you whenever everything is great but also when everything becomes too much."

Severus feels his robes getting wet and knows Harry is crying. "Harry, when is the last time you dropped your shields completely?"

Harry shrugs and Severus sighs. He fully understands Harry's current meltdown, as not dropping your shields after moment of great emotion causes all that emotion to build up. When he hugged Harry, Harry must have dropped his shields and it all came out at once. "Harry, I need you to drop your shields every night if possible. You are grounded for another while, which means Sirius and Remus are there every night to help you when you do. I can be there in a minute if I'm needed. It will allow you to let all your emotion out and rest your mind. It will also help lesson the sleepless nights. Once you go back to your room, you can use Dobby if you need one of us."

"I don't want to go back to my room. I like sleeping in our quarters in the teacher's wing. I feel safe, and know the headmaster can't come there."

Severus pulls back out of the hug slightly to look at Harry. "You would rather live with Sirius and Remus instead of have your own space like all students?"

"Yes. I don't like being grounded because I can't hang out with my friends or fly, but I do not mind staying in our quarters at night."

"You know you are always welcome to stay there, even when not in trouble, right?"

"Yeah but I don't want others to get suspicious if I never sleep in my room."

"Well how about this. Should you manage to stay out of trouble until the end of your grounding, we will make up some transgression that we will punish you with by requiring you to sleep in Sirius' quarters indefinitely. If you do get in trouble for something, we will still punish you but add that as an 'extra' punishment. If at any point you change your mind and want to stay in the dorms again, just let us know and we'll end the punishment. How does that sound?"

"You'd seriously do that?"

"Yes, but let's go talk to Sirius and Remus about this. Now to be seen going in there with you I'm going to yell, but ignore what I'm saying until we are inside there, alright?"

Harry nods and they depart Severus' quarters. As soon as they step into the classroom, Severus' sneer is back on his face. "Let's go Potter! I've had enough of your attitude! We're going to see those guardians of yours and have a serious discussion about your shenanigans!"

Severus puts his hand on Harry's shoulder and starts pushing him out of the classroom. As Severus expected, they run into the headmaster in the Entrance Hall.

"Problem Severus?"

"Potter was in detention but couldn't keep his comments to himself and was downright disrespectful. I'm tired of him getting away with everything, so I'm taking him to those guardians of his to have a serious discussion. Hopefully they can instill some manners in the boy."

"Very well, don't let me stop you."

When they march into the common room, Sirius and Remus are out there working. As soon as Severus sees them he marches up to them. "I need to have a word with you in private about your ward. He has crossed the line this time."

"Alright. Harry, why don't you go to your room," Sirius says.

Sirius, Remus and Severus follow Harry into their quarters, but to Sirius' surprise Harry sits down on the couch. He notices Severus putting up extra wards and looks at them in confusion. "Sorry Sirius, that was fake. We needed an excuse for Severus to come in here while at the same time getting an excuse for detention to end early."

"Why does it look like you've been crying?"

Severus quickly explains everything before ordering tea. Sirius looks at Harry in surprise. "Harry, if you wanted to stay here you could have said so. You are always welcome here. We will go with that plan. I actually had Dobby pack your trunk and all your belongings to bring here since you'd be staying here for two weeks and I noticed Dobby had to bring you something almost every day. This way all your belongings are here and you won't have to do that."

"Thank you. I didn't want to seem like a baby," Harry says softly.

He is immediately grabbed into hugs by both Sirius and Remus. "It takes a strong person to admit they need help. You are not weak or a baby, you are a strong young man looking for safety."

Severus hands everyone a cup of tea. When Harry looks in his he sees hot chocolate with marshmallows instead. He grins at Severus before relaxing back into the couch. "Do we still have Arithmancy tonight?"

Remus looks at Severus who shakes his head slightly. "Why don't we skip this week. You're doing excellent in it and are ahead of where I wanted you to be. Let's take the night and just relax."

They all notice Harry visibly relax and know skipping lessons was the right idea. "Harry, would you like to go to the Manor for the weekend? Lord Peterson can come there for your lesson. It might be good for you to get away from here for a bit."

Harry gives Sirius a hopeful look. "You think we can all get away?"

"I do. We just have to figure out a cover for Severus."

"It's almost a full moon. I can say I'm going to harvest ingredients that have to be harvested that time of the month."

"Perfect. Remus will be able to stay at the Manor for his transformation Monday night. We'll plan to leave Friday after classes."

Harry smiles, happy to be able to get away for a bit, and continues sipping his hot chocolate.

AN: Up next: a weekend at the Manor, dinner with the Petersons and Harry makes discoveries about the first task. Do you want to see Hermione/Viktor get together? Do you want Harry to date anyone and if so, who?


	33. Chapter 33

AN: This chapter will contain spanking. However, don't skip the entire chapter because there are important parts in it. It's obvious when it happens. Also, if you do decide to skip the whole chapter, at least read the author's note at the end!

Chapter 33

For Harry the remainder of the week can't go fast enough. To give him time to get ahead in his classes, which will allow him to relax at the Manor over the weekend, Harry does not have extra lessons Wednesday or Thursday. On Friday after classes he can barely contain his excitement, and when Sirius and Remus finally walk into the living room he immediately jumps up and grabs his weekend bag.

"Calm down Harry," Sirius laughs. "Let us grab our things and then we'll walk down to the gates."

It takes another half hour for Sirius and Remus to get ready to leave, but when they finally do they are stopped in the common room by the headmaster.

"Leaving for the weekend?"

"Yes Albus, we sent you notification of our plans on Tuesday," Remus says.

"I saw it. While I don't normally approve of three professors leaving the castle at the same time, I don't have much choice in this case as your request was valid."

"Who is the other professor leaving?" Sirius asks, pretending not to know.

"Severus put in a request for leave to get potions ingredients which can only be retrieved right before the Full Moon. That is also a request I can't deny, as those ingredients are valuable and I understand the need. Enjoy your weekend gentlemen."

Once they are out on the grounds, Harry looks up at Sirius. "He tried to deny you leaving for the weekend?"

"He did, but he can't because the Full Moon is Monday. It is in my contract that I am off duty as professor the day of the Full Moon, and Remus the day after the Full Moon as well. This is because I keep Remus company as Padfoot. When the moon falls on a Friday or Monday, we are also officially off duty the weekend before or after. Since it's on a Monday this time, we are off duty this weekend and Monday, and Remus is off duty Tuesday as well. Usually I still teach the day of the moon even though I have the right to take it off."

"That makes sense. That works in our favor this time."

"Yes it does. Now grab hold of my arm so we can get home."

As soon as they land in their living room, Harry falls down on the couch. "Ahh to be home again."

Sirius chuckles before joining him on the couch. "It feels nice. Severus will join us just before dinner."

"I might just sit here and enjoy the relaxing atmosphere of Black Manor until then. I can feel all my problems just disappear."

"I'm going to my room to take a nap until dinner," Remus announces. As soon as Remus is out of the room, Sirius turns to Harry

"Would you like to fly until dinner?"

Harry looks at Sirius in shock. "Did you forget I'm grounded?"

"No, but I want to go flying and I need someone to fly with. Remus is asleep and his room window looks towards the front of the Manor, not the pitch, and Severus won't be here for another hour."

"I'd love to fly but I don't think Remus would be happy with you if you let me."

"Let me worry about Remus. I'll deal with the consequences if we are caught."

Harry excitedly jumps up and soon Harry and Sirius are flying around the pitch. When they walk back inside, they almost run straight into Severus. "And what are you two doing with brooms?"

Harry and Sirius look at each other before looking at the ground. "I see. And whose idea was this?"

"Mine," Sirius says.

"And you probably convinced Harry it was alright. I was coming to find you to tell you dinner is ready. Remus is already at the table, I'll let you tell him yourself."

Remus knows something is going on when Sirius, Harry and Remus sit down. "What happened? I assumed you were outside when we didn't see you anywhere inside."

"We were. Remus, I know you're going to be upset. I convinced Harry to go flying with me for an hour."

"I see. We will discuss this further after dinner. Harry, you are not in trouble. I believe Sirius when he says he had to convince you. For now let us all enjoy dinner."

After dinner Harry disappears into the library, where he finds a book to read and curls up on some pillows in front of the fireplace. Sirius and Remus disappear upstairs, and Severus leaves for his lab.

When it comes close to Harry's bedtime, Sirius finds him in the library. "Hey pup, it's time to go to bed. And I'm sorry for suggesting flying earlier. As a guardian it wasn't right to encourage you to break the rules, and I'm sorry I suggested it was."

"It's alright Sirius, I could have still said no. Did you get in a lot of trouble?"

Sirius grimaces slightly. "Remus made his displeasure known. And his scoldings are not something to joke about."

Harry chuckles. "No they aren't. I don't know how he does it sometimes."

"Do you think he practices in front of the mirror?" Harry asks. They have now started to ascend the stairs towards their rooms.

Sirius laughs. "I've never seen him do it, but it would not surprise me in the least."

The following day Harry spends most of his time in the library or living room, reading the book he started the night before. Severus spends part of his day collecting potions ingredients, he has to have something to show for his alibi after all, and the rest of the day catching up on potions journals. Harry isn't entirely sure where Sirius and Remus have disappeared to, and when they appear at dinner sending smiles at one another, he decides it's better not to ask.

After dinner they are all gathered in the living room when they get a floo call from Lord Peterson. "Good evening gentlemen. I hope I'm not interrupting anything. I was calling to see if you'd be willing to do lessons before lunch, and then join us at our house after lunch? When my children found out you were coming Harry, they got very excited and I thought maybe you'd all like to fly together or something like that."

"You're not interrupting sir, and I'd love to do that but I'm grounded which means no flying," Harry replies.

"Maybe an exception could be made? As a parent I'm usually against that, but I promised my children I'd try my best."

Remus chuckles. "Why don't we plan to do lessons in the morning. We'll come over in the afternoon and by then we will have decided whether to allow Harry to fly or not."

"That sounds excellent to me. I will see you after breakfast," Lord Peterson says before ending the call.

Harry looks at Remus with a hopeful look. "I know you want to fly Harry, but I'm reluctant to let you off your grounding. At the same time we don't get many opportunities to leave the castle and socialize with someone else, that I don't want to put a damper on that either. Why don't you go to your room and start on one of your compulsion essays, and we'll discuss it?"

"I already finished both essays."

"Then why don't you go read. Just give us thirty minutes so we can talk about it."

Harry reluctantly leaves the room, but he doesn't want to ruin his chances of getting to fly before they've even discussed it, so he heads to the library to find another book to read.

"What do you think Severus?"

"I'm reluctant. I know it's harsh, but I'm not one to change my mind on punishments. That being said, his grades are excellent, he hasn't complained about his grounding, he does all his work including the extra assignments, and he is in much need of a break. I think we should allow this, but make it clear not to expect it next time. Maybe let him know that this is a reward for good behavior just as much as punishment is a consequence of bad behavior."

"I like looking at it that way. This way he knows we reward his good behavior and not just focus on punishing him when he does something wrong. Do you have something to do add Sirius?" Remus says.

"Not really. I think we should let him fly, but I think that was obvious after yesterday."

Severus and Remus both try not to laugh at that, knowing how true it is. When Harry returns to the room, Severus takes the lead since he assigned the original punishment.

"Harry, we have decided that as a reward for working so hard and for getting good grades, we are going to allow you to fly tomorrow while at Lord Peterson's house. That being said, do not expect this concession every time you get grounded and something comes up."

"I understand. Thank you," Harry says with a smile.

Lord Peterson arrives the following morning just as they are finishing up breakfast. Seeing the grim look on his face, they invite him to sit. "Gentlemen, I have finished researching the Tournament. I found something that would have gotten Harry out of it, but I waited on final research on it which I received this morning."

"Don't keep us waiting. Does Harry have to compete?" Sirius asks. He notices Harry's face has gotten pale.

"Unfortunately, yes he does. There was a ritual that could have gotten him out of the Tournament, except the ritual would have had to be done within 24 hours of the Goblet naming him as a Champion. I somehow don't doubt the Headmaster knew this ritual existed, and kept quiet on purpose. From a law perspective, there is nothing I can do as this is a binding magical contract."

Harry stands up with enough force to send his chair flying backwards and walks out of the room. They hear the back door slam shut and know that he has gone out in the backyard. Severus is looking more pale than usual, Sirius has his face in his hands and Remus is staring at Lord Peterson with a shocked look on his face.

Dobby pops in with tea and silently sets it down on the table before quietly leaving. Nothing is said for a while, before Severus gets up and walks out the backdoor in search of Harry. He knows they are all in shock, but someone has to make sure Harry is alright.

He finds Harry sitting on the ground by the pond, and he can easily tell that he is crying. He sits down next to him and pulls him into a sideways one armed hug. When he feels Harry calm down, he waits for him to talk first. "I had this hope that I could get out of it. Now to know that I could have if the old coot would have just told us about the ritual, I don't know how to handle this. I don't think I can look at him and not snap. To know that he wants me to compete in a Tournament that could kill me is insane. What could the purpose of me competing possibly be? And then to know that I really could die before the end of the year. I will once again be fighting for my life. I don't understand the purpose of this."

"I'm not sure why he'd want you to compete, but my theory is that he wants to test your skills and is doing the Tournament to do so. You are a powerful wizard Harry, I have faith in you to make it through alive. And we will help you every step of the way. You are not alone. It's cold out here, do you want to come back inside and warm up?"

Harry nods and they both stand up. When they walk back in, three pairs of concerned eyes focus on Harry. "I'm alright. I just needed a minute."

Sirius pulls Harry into his lab and embraces him tightly. "We are here to help you pup. Don't ever forget that."

Harry nods. When he tries to pull away and get up, Sirius won't let him. "No, I need to hold you a little longer."

When Remus finally pries Harry away from Sirius, Lord Peterson tells him to sit down and puts a piece of parchment in front of him. "Please complete this quiz. It won't take you long and it's just to make sure you remember last week's lesson, and will let me know if we need to go over something again."

This starts their lessons, and Sirius, Remus and Severus leave the room to do other things. They return at lunch time, right when Lord Peterson is finishing. "I will see you all at my house after lunch. You have my floo address, correct?"

"Yes. We will see you shortly," Remus says with a nod.

After lunch Harry changes into robes, knowing that it's expected when visiting a wizarding home especially for the first time, and gets his broom from the broom closet. He shrinks it and puts it in his pocket before meeting the others by the floo.

Arriving at Lord Peterson's home, they are greeted by his wife and children. Harry immediately notices that Eric and Lisa can barely contain their excitement so he winks at them.

"Gentlemen, let me make the introductions. First, you may all call me Henry. I think there is no need for formality. This is my wife Sara, my son Eric and my daughter Lisa. This is Harry, Sirius, Remus and Severus," Henry says while nodding at each person as he says their name.

"Nice to meet you all," Harry says with a smile.

"It is nice to finally meet you Harry. I had no idea Henry was your solicitor, but I shouldn't be surprised with all the time he's been gone lately."

"I apologize for keeping him away from home. I'll try to stay out of trouble more so he'll have an easier job," Harry says teasingly.

"Why don't we all retreat to the living room where we can get comfortable? I'm not sure Eric and Lisa can stand still much longer," Sara suggests.

"Actually, I brought my broom. Maybe they'd like to go flying?"

Eric and Lisa immediately turn hopeful looks on their father, and when he nods they smile widely. "Come on Harry, I'll show you are pitch."

Soon the three are out back flying. Harry notices that Lisa is fairly shy while Eric is a burst of energy and simply excited that Harry is there. Meanwhile the adults retreat to the living room.

"I just want to say that when I read that Harry was chosen as a Champion for that awful Tournament, I felt terrible. He is so young, and seeing him for the first time today reinforces that. I have a feeling that's what Henry has been working on so much lately, and I really hope he finds a way out."

"Unfortunately, Henry informed us this morning that there is no way out. I think the afternoon with your children is exactly the distraction Harry needs," Severus says.

Sara nods. "I'm sorry to hear that. I have to say Severus, I was surprised to hear you would be coming. Off course we've cast charms so that anything that happens here today can't be repeated except amongst ourselves, so I hope you don't worry I'll reveal anything. The press hasn't been kind about you in the past, and I'd like to believe you are hiding your true self."

Severus nods. "I have reasons to do so."

"I understand. Now let's talk about more pleasant things. Sirius, I've heard you are an animagus?"

Sirius nods before transforming into a black dog. When he transforms back, there is delight in Sara's eyes. "Could you show my children that? I've told them some about Animagi, but they've never met one."

"Sure, I'd love to. What do you all say we go outside and watch the kids fly?"

Everyone agrees, and after putting on cloaks and warming charms, they head outside. Right as they reach the makeshift pitch, they see Harry diving for the ground before pulling up right before crashing. They see he's holding a snitch and assume they must have been chasing it.

"Does he do that a lot?" Henry asks.

"What? Risk his neck on a broom? All the time," Remus replies.

"He's an amazing flier but if I had to watch my son pull stunts like that I'd probably take away his broom," Henry says with a slight shudder.

Severus grins at him. "When you have a son like Harry, you don't have that option. You'd have mutiny on your hands if you tried, and telling him not to do those stunts only makes it more fun for him to do them. We just have to trust his flying abilities."

Sirius and Remus share a look as Severus refers to Harry as his son, but wisely don't say anything.

"That may be, but it'd be very tempting. I hope he doesn't teach Eric those moves. Lisa enjoys flying but she has no intention of playing Quidditch or doing tricks."

"As much as I know Harry hates it, I'm not adverse to taking his broom as punishment when he misbehaves. I hold my breath every time I see him doing a stunt," Severus says. "I've had a hard time watching him fly like that since he first joined the Gryffindor team in First Year."

"When I saw him fly for the first time in Third Year, I had the same reaction. Then the last Quidditch game of the year was terrible with fouls left and right and I was very tempted to summon him out of the air. He has been in the hospital wing many times after flying, and after that game he had to spent a full day there to heal. His father was the same way though, and while he was talented he didn't have quite the talent Harry has. And knowing how much flying relaxes him, I can't take it away from him."

"Is he showing Eric how to do a corkscrew?" Henry suddenly asks.

They all look up to find that that's exactly what Harry is doing. "Yes he is," Sirius says.

"I'm sorry, I can't watch this," Sara says. "Eric Peterson! Get down here!"

Eric lands where they are standing, and Harry quickly lands too, confusion clear in his eyes.

"I do not want to see you doing those stunts young man. I understand they look like fun, but they are dangerous. You can sit upright on your broom and fly but that's it."

"Yes mum. Can I got back to flying now?"

"Yes you may. And Harry, I'd appreciate it if you didn't teach him those stunts."

"Yes ma'am."

Soon the boys are back to flying, after sharing an exasperated look, this time staying away from all tricks.

"I think the moment we turn our back they are going to resume that corkscrew lesson," Henry says with slight bemusement clear in his voice.

They see Harry coaxing Lisa to go faster, which after some hesitation she does.

After a good hour of flying, Sara calls them down. "Why don't we all head back inside. It really is getting too cold out to be out here long."

"It's not cold when flying. You all didn't have to stay there and watch," Harry says. "We can stay out here while you all head inside."

Severus gives him a look and he immediately lowers his eyes.

"We know we didn't have to but we felt better doing so. There are plenty of things to do inside," Henry says.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to argue."

"You're fine Harry," Henry says while putting a reassuring hand on Harry's shoulder and squeezing slightly.

Once they are all inside they sit down to have tea and Harry realizes he's thirsty after flying in the cold air like that. He talks with Lisa and Eric about what their hobbies are, and what it's like to be homeschooled. The adults have their own conversations, but sitting next to Harry, Severus occasionally overhears them and has to try to contain his amusement.

"It's hard having your mum as your teacher. You can't get away with anything, and instead of getting lines or detention I get my bum smacked or grounded. It just doesn't seem fair. I look forward to Hogwarts so I can get away with more."

Harry snickers. "Don't count on it. Some teachers live to get students in trouble. And lines make your hand hurt and depending on the teacher, detention is awful. Once you get there, don't ever get detention with Filch, it's the worst. After that it's Professor Snape, he makes you dissect disgusting potions ingredients or scrub cauldrons. Most other teacher's just make you write an essay or lines during detention."

Eric looks at Harry in awe. "Do you get a lot of detentions?"

"Unfortunately. You have to be really careful not to get caught, but it's hard with so many professors around. When you get to Hogwarts I'll show you some tricks to help you. Oh, and if you mess up enough they'll send a letter to your parents."

"Mum would probably come wallop my bum if she got a letter."

"Then make sure that doesn't happen. Trust me, it's not fun. Oh, and don't ever tell your dad I'm giving you tips on how to avoid getting caught. I really don't want to get in trouble with him."

"Agreed. What's discussed between us stays between us."

"Ahum, if that was the case you wouldn't discuss it in front of the adults," Severus says. They suddenly realize everyone is focused on them.

"Harry, if I find out you had something to do with it when Eric gets in trouble, I will not hesitate to wallop your bum as well," Henry says.

Harry can't tell if he's teasing or not, so he looks hesitant. "You're joking, right?"

"That's for me to know and you to not find out."

Harry looks back at Eric, who shrugs his shoulder. By turning away he doesn't notice the amused look Henry shares with the others. They all know Henry would never discipline Harry, but Harry doesn't need to know that.

"I think it's time we leave the adults to boring talk and find something fun to do," Harry says to Eric and Lisa. They immediately jump up and leave the room.

"Should I be worried?" Henry asks.

"I don't think so. Harry knows we expect him to behave. He was probably just getting bored with sitting still," Sirius says with a smile.

Meanwhile Eric, Harry and Lisa have started a game of Exploding Snap in what Eric calls the playroom. In reality its a huge room with comfortable couches, bookshelves along one side filled with various games, and a game table in the far corner. Harry decides he likes the room. "I might have to create a room like this at Black Manor."

"It's really nice. Mum and Dad don't really come in here unless it's to tell us something. It's comfortable and a great place to hang out."

"I have a room I can turn into something similar in my bedroom suite. It wouldn't be hard to do either."

"Why don't we go do that now?"

"Because our parents would kill us if we floo'd un-supervised," Lisa says.

"What if we asked?" Harry says.

Eric looks hopeful, and soon they are running back downstairs.

"Dad, can we go to Black Manor? Harry likes our playroom and wants to create something similar in one of his rooms."

"No, you may not. You can all do that some other day," Henry replies.

"But Harry will be with us. We'll be fine!"

"No Eric, you are not going. And Harry is fourteen, not an adult. Why don't you all go wash up for dinner?"

Eric and Lisa start walking away but Henry stops Harry. "I trust you with my kids Harry, but I just don't think it's a good idea for the three of you to run around Black Manor un-supervised."

"It's fine."

"Alright, I just wanted to make sure you understood that. There is a bathroom down that hall you may use."

Dinner is a rowdy affair, with everyone talking and lots of laughter. When it is time for them to leave, Henry pulls Harry into a hug. "You take care young man. Keep your wits about you, and if you need me for anything don't hesitate to call. I don't care what time of day it is."

"I will. Thank you," Harry says with a smile. He has really gotten to know his solicitor on a more personal level.

Once they are all back at Black Manor they gather their things to head back to Hogwarts. Severus floos back while Sirius, Remus and Harry apparate back. As soon as they get back to their quarters Sirius ushers Harry to bed. "You need a good night's sleep, especially after today. Do you need dreamless sleep?"

Harry shakes his head. "No, I think I'll be fine. Goodnight."

Harry casts silencing charms around his bed before falling into a deep sleep. He ends up waking up from a nightmare twice, and when his alarm goes off he's exhausted. Sirius notices how sleepy Harry looks and stops him before he can leave for breakfast. "Did you not sleep well?"

"I'm fine, just a little tired."

"That's not what I asked and you know it. I've told you before not to cast silencing charms around your bed but I have a feeling you did last night. How many?"

Knowing that Sirius is asking if he had nightmares, he looks down when answering. "Two."

"I see. Harry, I know you don't like waking up others when you have a nightmare, but you can trust me. I want to be there for you but when you cast those charms, I can't. Why didn't you accept the dreamless sleep last night?"

"I don't like medicating against the nightmares."

"Well you're taking some tonight. Let's head to breakfast."

Harry struggles to stay awake most of the day, and when he gets a note from Hagrid to meet him at eleven by his hut, he sighs. He goes in search of his guardians after dinner to ask them what to do about Hagrid, but can't find them anywhere. He doesn't see Severus either and has no good reason to go down to the dungeons, which would be hard to explain if he's caught, so he does the only thing he can think of and leaves to meet Hagrid. He knows he's not supposed to be out, but Hagrid's note sounded urgent.

Hagrid had instructed him to bring his Cloak, and when he gets to the hut Hagrid tells him to put it on. He follows Hagrid into the forest, where they meet up with Madame Maxine. Harry also sees Karkarof in the distance and wonders what's going on. As soon as they get to the clearing, the purpose of this trip is clear and Harry's mouth drops open. There, in four huge cages, are four dragons. He hears the handlers trying to keep them calm.

"Charlie! They are beautiful!" Hagrid says loudly.

Harry looks at the red head who turns around and immediately realizes it's Charlie Weasley. "Stay back Hagrid, you don't want to get too close."

Harry has seen enough and turns around to leave, only to come face to face with a big black dog. He forgot to cast a scent masking smell, and realizes that it's Sirius in his Animagus form, who can now smell him even if he can't see him.

Padfoot smelled his pup when running back to the Shrieking Shack. He had seen, and heard, the dragons and was now going back to his mate. He reaches out a paw and snags the Cloak. He then proceeds to motion his head towards the Castle. He is furious, and he is going to make it well known. How could he be out after dark, especially during a Full Moon?

Harry quickly walks back to the castle, hoping that Padfoot doesn't follow him. He wonders why Sirius is in the forest, when he looks up and suddenly realizes why he couldn't find Remus or Sirius. Suddenly he is very worried, knowing his guardians will be furious. He also can't get the image of the dragons out of his head.

When they get to the castle, Sirius transforms back. "Remove the Cloak."

Harry obeys immediately. "You are in more trouble than you've ever been in before. I can't deal with you as I have to get back to Remus. I want you to go to our quarters and floo call Severus. You will tell him exactly what happened. He will deal with you, and tomorrow you and I are going to have a very long discussion. Both about the task and about your need to be outside during the Full Moon. Now go."

"Sirius, I,"

"No Harry. I love you pup, but I'm trying really hard to hold back and not pull you over my knee right here in the Entrance Hall. Severus told you what he would do if you got caught out after curfew again, and I don't want you to get punished twice. Go please."

Harry looks at Sirius sadly before turning and almost running to their quarters. He floo calls Severus, who is now in his quarters unlike before, and asks him to come over. When Severus steps through the floo, Harry immediately tells his story.

"Dragons. The first task is dragons."

Harry nods. "Charlie Weasley was there. Do you think you can find out if we actually have to fight them or do something else?"

"I will find out. Right now I want you to forget about the dragons, we will deal with those tomorrow. I am very disappointed you chose to go to Hagrid based on a note. What if someone else had written that note? You had many other options besides going out there alone."

"But I couldn't find Remus or Sirius and I tried floo calling you and you weren't there!"

"What about Filius? Did you try contacting your Head of House?"

Harry shakes his head. "I forgot about him."

"What about your friends. Did they know where you were going?"

"No."

"So you went out after curfew, to the _Forbidden _Forest, based on a note, during a FULL MOON! What were you thinking Harry! You should have ignored the note and tried to get an explanation from Hagrid the next day or talk to one of us the next day! I am confiscating that Cloak, which I thought was already locked up but apparently not good enough. You will write a two foot essay about what you could have done differently. You will write a three foot essay about the dangers of the Forbidden Forest during a Full Moon. You are grounded an additional week. The only day you will not be grounded is Saturday, as that is the day of the First Task. Last, you are getting a spanking. I had hoped to never have to spank you Harry, but I promised you a spanking you wouldn't forget and that's exactly what you're going to get. Stand up please."

Harry does as he's told, and soon he is face down over Severus' lap. He knows what he did was stupid, he should have at least brought a friend. He also knows he should have remembered the Full Moon. When he feels Severus lower his trousers, he is glad he is leaving his pants in place even though they won't provide much protection.

The first smack takes him by surprise, and when he looks back he realizes the sting was caused by a wooden hairbrush not the hand he was expecting. It doesn't take him long to start crying, and his backside feels like it's on fire.

Severus doesn't feel the need to lecture, knowing that Harry knows exactly why he's being punished. Not wanting a repeat, he continues to land firm smacks on Harry's backside. He feels a warmth radiating from it, even through Harry's pants, and knows he's getting the point across. To finish the punishment, he tips Harry forward slightly and lands ten smacks right on his sit spots.

Severus slowly rubs Harry's back, waiting for him to somewhat calm down. He knows this spanking was harder than any Harry's had before, and he knows from experience that Harry will feel at least some of it until at least dinner the next day. He hopes it will teach Harry how serious he is.

When he feels that Harry has calmed down he helps him stand, and immediately finds himself with a lapful of teenage boy. Harry clings to him, even though he is no longer crying. His backside is throbbing. "I'm sorry Severus."

"You are forgiven Harry, but hopefully you realize how serious I am about you putting yourself in danger. I expect you to apologize to Sirius and Remus as well."

Harry nods. "I was already going to."

"Good. And I promise we will figure out the dragon situation. Now I think you should head to bed. There's a vial of dreamless sleep on your nightstand. I will stay here the remainder of the night. I think from now on when it's the Full Moon, I should stay here so you aren't alone in case you need someone. We should have realized that before. I'll come in to say goodnight in a minute."

Harry heads to his bed, takes the dreamless sleep and lays down on his stomach. He buries deeply under the blankets and into the pillows and is asleep within minutes. Severus see him curled up and smiles softly. He tucks the covers around Harry and gives the top of his head a kiss. "I wish I could take all your fears away, and wish you didn't have to face things like dragons. But all I can do is keep you safe the only way I know how," he whispers softly before leaving the room.

Harry wakes up feeling refreshed the next morning. That is, until he rolls over and is reminded of the previous night. He quickly gets out of bed and heads to the bathroom for a shower. He looks at his backside in the mirror and notes that it is still pink. He is surprised as he had expected bright red based on how it feels. He quickly gets ready for the day before going in search of Sirius.

He finds him asleep in bed along with Remus. There are no injuries on Remus, so Harry has a feeling the Wolfsbane improvement worked. "Sirius," he whispers.

Sirius turns over and sees Harry sitting on the side of his bed. As soon as Harry knows Sirius is awake he leans over and gives him a hug. "I'm so sorry. It was stupid. I'm sure Severus will tell you the full story but I have to get to breakfast and class. I just wanted to apologize before leaving."

Sirius hugs Harry back. "I love you pup. Severus already told us the story, and your punishment. I had to hold Remus back or he would have gone into your room and given you another walloping. His biggest fear is hurting someone, especially someone he loves, while transformed and he's furious you were out there. I was angry pup, but I know you've been punished and you realize what you did wrong. It will take a little more convincing for Remus. On a sidenote, the adjustment to the Wolfsbane worked amazingly and the transformation was easier than it usually is."

Harry looks over at Remus' sleeping form. "I'm glad it worked. I will apologize to Remus as soon as I get the chance. I really have to run now."

Harry gives Sirius one last hug before running down to the Great Hall. His fidgeting in his seat isn't noticed by most, but Viktor looks at him in concern. "You were out there last night, weren't you? Karkarof told me what he saw."

Harry understands the cryptic message and nods. "I got caught. It was a Full Moon as well. I will make sure Cedric knows since Madame Maxine was out there too."

Viktor nods, knowing that's fair. "Full Moon? There are no werewolves here, are there?"

"There's at least one we've heard about. It's just a general rule for all students to stay inside on a Full Moon, as a safety precaution."

"I see. That is a good rule."

Harry shrugs, knowing it's true but at the moment not feeling so thankful for that rule. The rest of the day he worries about his upcoming talk with Remus. He wouldn't blame him if he punished him again, knowing that it's Remus' biggest fear to hurt him. He manages to pay attention in his classes, but doesn't put in any extra effort. When he finally makes it back to their quarters, he finds Remus sitting on the couch looking much better than he normally does after a transformation.

'Sit down Harry."

Harry quickly obeys. "Before you say anything, I'm really sorry about last night. I forgot it was the Full Moon, but I should have remembered because you had mentioned it the night before. I also shouldn't have gone out there, even if I hadn't remembered."

"Thank you Harry. First, let me thank you for the improvement to the Wolfsbane. I feel much better. That being said, I have told you of my fear of hurting someone else. You know perfectly well that one of our big rules is to stay inside during the Full Moon. On top of that, you have someone trying to kill you. You still went out there. If I had been roaming the Forest, I could have seriously injured you. We usually scout the Forest before I transform, and we had heard the dragons and dragon handlers. That is the only reason I decided to stay inside the shack. Remus knows that you have been punished, and from what I heard punished thoroughly, by Severus. However, Moony is furious with is cub and is fighting the urge to wallop your backside. I've struggled with this all day and don't know how to calm him down. As the Alpha of his pack, Moony's instinct is to discipline anyone within the pack who misbehaves. An Alpha doesn't pay attention to whether a member of the pack has been disciplined already, it's the Alpha's job. In real pack's, the Alpha handles all discipline for this reason, even small things. Cubs who misbehave are disciplined by the Alpha, not their parents. Normally Moony doesn't show this Alpha side when you get in trouble, but last night Moony caught your scent. I was in the tunnel leading to the shack when you walked past and Moony can smell anyone in his pack from a mile away. Because Moony caught your scent, his Alpha instincts kicked in."

Harry sits there listening, feeling terrible. "Remus, I understand what you're saying about Moony. I read about Alpha werewolves when I found out about you and I know how it works. I don't know what to tell Moony to get him to understand I've been punished?"

"I think Moony needs to punish his cub," Sirius says from behind them. Harry looks up to see Sirius and Severus standing there. "I don't think Moony will let it go until he does. It doesn't have to be severe, but I do think it's necessary."

"My punishment last night was mostly for going out after curfew, by yourself, without letting anyone know. The only punishment I gave for being out during the Full Moon was the essay."

"I remember one time when I got myself in danger in Seventh Year. It was the night of the moon and Moony caught my scent and caught what I was doing. I won't go into details, but I got caught by Professor McGonnagal and so Remus didn't punish me for it. Moony kept fighting him on it, and eventually he simply bent me over my bed and walloped my behind. It came out of nowhere, but Remus couldn't back Moony anymore. I think if we ignore it now, Moony will eventually win out and punish Harry."

"I remember that day. I had been fighting Moony for almost a week, but it was exhausting and my resolve broke. We were alone in the dorm, and Moony decided enough was enough. My wolf instincts aren't dominant between moons, but not acknowledging a base instinct will make my wolf instincts stronger and more prominent. Harry, would you hate me if I punished you for being out during the Full Moon? The punishment would be for an additional rule you broke besides being out after curfew."

"My bum is still a little sore from Severus' spanking," Harry tries.

"That's not what I asked."

"No I won't hate you. I might be mad at you because I hate getting spanked and I've already walked around with a sore bum all day, but I won't hate you because I understand that Moony needs something. You aren't going to spank hard, are you?"

Remus sighs. "It will be a sound spanking. I'm not going to lie and say you don't deserve it and go easy on you, because quite frankly you do. You were punished for going out after curfew, but Severus knew there as a chance Moony would have caught your scent and so he didn't punish you for being out during a Full Moon. I told you before the first Full Moon at the Manor that if I ever caught you out during it you'd find yourself over my knee. Do you want to do it here or in your room?"

Harry looks hesitant. He has to admit that he's known all day that he was in for more punishment, and he had caught onto the fact that Severus hadn't specifically punished him for this. But why did Moony favor spanking? "Can't I just be grounded a little longer instead?"

"Harry, you can drag this out all you want. You are getting a spanking. It will sting, but you won't feel it by morning."

"Fine, let's go to my room."

Once Remus and Harry are out of the room, Sirius looks at Severus. "Do you feel bad for spanking him that hard, knowing now that he's getting punished by Remus?"

Severus shakes his head. "No. He deserved every bit of what I gave him. And he has to understand that dealing with a werewolf comes with certain complications. Maybe now he'll take his life seriously enough to obey the rules. Did you have any luck talking to Charlie?"

"I did. He said he doesn't know what the task is, just that they were told to bring nesting mothers. He thinks the only reason they'd ask for nesting mothers is if they want the dragons to protect something the Champions have to steal."

"At least that's better than fighting it. When Harry gets back, we should come up with a strategy."

When Harry and Remus walk back in a few minutes later, Sirius takes Harry into a hug. "I'm really sorry. I promise not to go out at night again. I knew it was stupid before I even did it and I should have listened to my instincts," Harry says while curling up on the couch between Sirius and Remus. Just like he had done many times over the summer, he leans against Sirius and puts his feet under Remus' leg.

"We know pup. We aren't angry anymore. Are you ready to talk about the dragons?" Sirius says while putting an arm around Harry.

"I suppose. Did any of you find out anything?"

Sirius nods and repeats what he has found out. "So we think I just have to steal something. So somehow I need a strategy that either distracts the dragonor gets the dragon away from whatever it is."

"Yes Harry, that's exactly what I was thinking as well. Do you have ideas?"

"Let me think for a minute."

While they are all sitting there, thinking about ways to distract a dragon, the floo flares to life. Lord Peterson's head sticks out. "Evening gentlemen. I have a request, and I really hate to even ask but I don't know who else to ask. We had a little accident in the kids' potions lesson today and Sara has to stay overnight in St. Mungo's. I would love to be able to stay with her as she has a fear of hospitals. Would Eric and Lisa be able to stay with you for the night?"

Sirius immediately nods. "Off course. We are debating ideas for the first task but we can continue that once they are in bed."

"You know what the task is?"

"They brought in nesting dragons. We think Harry will have to steal something the dragon will be protecting."

"Dragons. I will think about ideas as well and I will get Sara thinking too. I'd say play to your strengths."

"I don't have any strengths."

This earns Harry a mild cuff around his head. "Don't ever let me hear you say that again. You have many strengths. Your flying for instance, and your magical power. Your parseltongue."

"Flying!" Lord Peterson says. "You can fly to distract the dragon and steal whatever it is!"

"But I'm not allowed a broom."

"No but you are allowed a wand. Alright, I will be sending the kids through in a minute. They are packing an overnight bag now."

"Harry, you can summon your broom," Severus.

Harry looks shocked before his face lights up. "Off course! Now we need a backup plan just in case it's not that simple."

"Simple. My cub calls flying with a dragon simple. I might just lock you in your room for all eternity," Remus says.

"I agree with Harry we need a plan B, just in case," Sirius says with an amused look to Remus.

Before they can contemplate any further, Lord Peterson steps through the floo with Eric and Lisa. "I'm glad I petitioned to be allowed to floo to Hogwarts when needed. It has come in useful. Now Eric, Lisa, I expect you to behave. I will pick you up before breakfast in the morning. Eric, don't forget to finish your essay. If it's not finished when I pick you up I will take away your broom for a month, understood?"

"Yes dad. Tell mom I'm sorry and I love her."

"I will. Love you both."

"Well, why don't you two sit down and I'll order hot chocolate," Sirius says. Sirius calls for Dobby, and soon they all have hot chocolate in front of them.

"Uhm Sirius, where will they sleep? Do you want me to go to the dorm for the night?" Harry asks.

"No, I'll just transfigure the couch and one of the armchairs into small beds. It will be a little crowded out here but it'll be fine. I want you in these rooms so I can hear you if you need me. Just so you know, I cast a charm on your bed that alerts me if you are having a nightmare."

"Wonderful," Harry says, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"So what essay do you have Eric," Remus asks.

Eric flushes. "I wasn't paying attention during lessons, and I decided to make my potion more colorful so I added food coloring that I'd found. It made my potion blow up and mum jumped to push me out of the way so she got all of it. They said she's fine but they want to keep her just in case. Dad spanked me for not paying attention and because I know better than to add something unknown to a potion without asking mum first. I have to write an essay on the dangers of adding ingredients that don't belong to potions."

"And it's not the first time you've played around with potions," Lisa adds which earns her a glare from her brother.

Harry glances at Severus, whose face is impassive but Harry can tell he's struggling not to say anything. "Severus is the Potions Master at Hogwarts. He can probably help you with your essay so you'll have it done faster. He made me write a similar essay once when I exploded a cauldron in class."

Eric snickers. "Do you do that a lot?"

Harry shakes his head. "Not anymore. Severus is very strict in class so he usually catches a problem before the potion blows up or melts the cauldron."

"And with good reason. You dunderheads would be blowing each other up if I didn't keep order and pay attention," Severus scowls.

Harry laughs. "What do you say, you going to help Eric?"

"No I will not. He will do the research on his own, and then I will check the essay to ensure it's satisfactory."

Eric glares at Severus, but then gets up. "I suppose I'll go do that then. Should I use the kitchen table?"

"Yes, that's fine Eric. Harry will join you shortly as he has some essays to write as well," Severus says with a pointed look.

When Harry joins Eric, Eric looks at the parchment Harry has in front of him. "What's your essay about?" he whispers.

"I snuck out last night and got caught in the Forbidden Forest. I have to write about the dangers."

Eric's eyes grow wide. "I thought that forest was dangerous?"

"It is, which is my Harry is writing that essay," Sirius says while walking into the kitchen to get a tin of biscuits out. He puts some on plate and puts it on the table for Harry and Eric. "I think if you both have to work, you at least deserve a snack."

Harry and Eric share a grin before they each snatch a biscuit off the plate. Before long they are both done, and both hand their essays to Severus who starts reading. "These look fine. You have the remainder of the week for your other one Harry. Now I think it's time for bed."

They all get up and Sirius quickly transfigures the beds for Eric and Lisa. Harry disappears into his room, and he is soon joined by Sirius. "Good night pup. I know the last day has been really hard for you but just know we love you. If you want to cast silencing charms tonight because of Eric and Lisa I understand. With the other charm in place I will still know when you need me."

"I love you too Sirius. I already don't feel the spanking anymore. Remus only gave me a five swats. They stung and were all on my sit spots, but it wasn't too bad."

"I didn't think he'd spank you hard. Just remember it."

"I will. Goodnight Sirius."

"Night pup."

AN: I know it might seem unfair that he was punished twice, but Remus went easy on him. Eric and Lisa will make somewhat regular appearances in this story, especially Eric once he starts at Hogwarts. For those who don't particularly like the spanking, I will give away that this was the last spanking Harry will have gotten in a long time. He might get the occasional swat, but that's it. I wrote this chapter as a harsh punishment as a sort of turning point when Harry starts obeying the rules more and taking his life more seriously. Up next: Harry talks to Cedric, anxiety over the dragons, the first task, Rita Skeeter, Dudley makes a reappearance and it involves Malfoy and more Viktor!


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

Harry wakes up to laughter coming from the living room. He gets up and walks out to see Eric and Lisa playing with a big black dog. Right when he walks out, Remus does as well and they share an amused look.

"Sirius, stop that. We all need to get ready for the day and there's not enough space in here for Padfoot."

Sirius transforms back, much to Eric and Lisa's delight, and Harry quickly runs into the bathroom. He knows it's the first place Sirius will go and he doesn't have time to wait. When he comes out, wearing part of his uniform and hair dripping wet, Lord Peterson is already there to pick up his kids. "How's Sara?"

"She's home and completely recovered."

Remus attacks Harry's hair from behind with a towel. "One day you'll learn to dry your own hair."

"Oh it's fine."

"It is now that I've dried it. You have to hurry if you want to be ready in time."

Harry quickly puts on his tie, jumper and robes. He grabs his book bag and starts to leave. "Bye Eric and Lisa. I'm sure I'll see you soon!"

On his way down to the Great Hall Harry sees Cedric walking with some friends. "Cedric!"

"Hi Harry."

"Can we talk for a minute? Alone?"

"Sure. Go on ahead guys," Cedric says to his friends.

"I found out I have to compete. I also found out what the first task is, and Karkaroff and Maxime already know. It's dragons."

Cedric looks in completely shock. "I'm sorry you have to compete but thank you for telling me. Blimey, dragons."

Harry nods. "I just wanted you to know. I'd better get to breakfast."

"I'll walk with you."

Walking through the Entrance Hall they suddenly see a huge group surrounding something. They share a look before getting closer, and what they see is not what they were expecting. On the floor is Dudley wrestling with Malfoy. Harry pushes through the group with Cedric and they try to pull the two apart. They get help from Viktor and soon Harry and Cedric are holding Dudley while Viktor is holding Malfoy. Severus chooses that moment to arrive on the scene. "What is going on here? Everyone who was not involved, get to breakfast! Now!"

"Mr. Dursley, please explain."

"He was insulting my parents because they are muggleborn sir. He then started making some really nasty comments about Harry and myself. When I told him to shut up and tried to walk away he tried to hex me, but I ducked out of the way. I then hit him, and that turned into a fight."

"Mr. Malfoy, do you have anything to ad?"

"No sir."

"Very well. We will take this to the headmaster. Mr. Potter, Mr. Diggory and Mr. Krum, you may let go. Thank you for your help."

The three of them watch Professor Snape grab both boys by the arm and drag them towards the headmaster's office, before turning towards the Great Hall. They pick seats at the end of the Hufflepuff table, and after casting charms they start eating quickly. "Dragons" Cedric keeps mumbling. Viktor and Harry share an amused look.

"You alright there Cedric?" Harry finally asks.

"Yeah, just trying to think of ways to deal with a dragon. Don't mind me."

"Alright, if you say so. I wonder what the headmaster is going to do with Dudley and Malfoy."

"No corporal punishment at Hogwarts, right?" Viktor asks.

"No. They'll either get detention, a letter to their parents or guardians, or suspension."

Just then Dudley and Malfoy walk back into the Great Hall. Harry gets up and walks over to Dudley. "You alright?"

"A week detention and a letter to my guardian."

"That sucks. Who is your detention with?"

"My Head of House. Malfoy got suspended for two days, he is having breakfast and one of his parents is to pick him up right after. He got suspended because it's not the first time he's been in trouble for fighting and because he tried to hex me. He was mumbling something about family honor on the way down?"

"Well you are my cousin, and politically it's not smart to attack a family member of a Confirmed Lord. I have a feeling his father will be very unhappy."

"Yeah he seemed worried when he found out he was going home."

"Mr. Dursley, please follow me to my office," they hear Professor Flitwick say behind them.

Harry decides to leave for class. He has four days left until the first task, and he is worried simply flying around the dragon won't be good enough. He has to come up with more ideas.

This worry remains with Harry over the next few days. His guardians have taught him a few spells that might work against a dragon but they don't come up with an actual plan B.

The morning of the first task Harry is a bundle of nerves. Sirius has decided they are having lunch in their quarters before Harry has to head down, but Harry can't get himself to eat.

"I'll just throw it all up anyway, there's no point. I promise to eat afterwards. I can't believe that I'll be facing a dragon in an hour."

"Everything will be alright pup. There are many qualified wizards there to help if something goes wrong. Just keep yourself safe, even if you can't finish the task, alright?"

"I'll try. I need to head down there. Will you walk with me?"

Both Remus and Sirius walk down to the grounds with Harry but are stopped from going into the Champions tent. "I love you pup. Be careful," Sirius says while hugging Harry. Remus also hugs Harry. "I love you both. Please tell a certain someone the same."

Sirius nods, knowing Harry is referring to Severus. When Harry walks into the tent, Sirius and Remus head to the stands to find a seat. They sit down next to Severus, who they can tell is hiding his nerves.

Harry walks into the tent to find he is the last one to arrive. "Ahh Mr. Potter, glad you could join us. All Champions please gather around. In this bag I hold four items, the item you grab will be the item you are up against out there. It is also numbered, which is the order in which you will perform the task. Your goal is to get the golden egg. Once you get that, the task is complete. Mr. Krum, you may go first."

Once Harry has pulled his dragon out of the bag, they all split up to mentally prepare for the task. They all knew it'd be dragons, so none of them were surprised by that. "Good luck everyone. Be safe out there," Harry says.

Everyone nods in return, but it's clear they are all nervous. One by one Harry watches the other Champions take their turn. He can't see what they're doing, but he can hear the crowds and announcements. When it's finally his turn, he is shaking.

He walks out and see he is in a big arena with rocks everywhere. He sees his dragon to the side and freezes for a second. When the dragon moves, he snaps back to reality and lifts his wand. "Accio Firebolt!"

The waiting begins, and Harry is glad it's only a minute or two before his broom is hovering beside him. He quickly mounts it and takes to the air. Now to distract the dragon. He flies close several times, narrowly escaping the flames each time. He decides to try and trick the dragon away from the egg by flying in front of it, just out of reach.

Up in the stands Sirius is holding Remus' arm in fear. Every time Harry almost gets fried by the flames he flinches. He can feel Remus having similar reactions, and the only thing giving away Severus' thoughts is his eyes.

Severus is watching the task with a lump in his throat. It is taking all of his self control to not summon Harry out of the air, drag him to his room and lock him in there. He has caught onto Harry's strategy, and is glad he is succeeding but he just wants it to be over. Suddenly the dragon lunges towards Harry. Harry takes the opportunity, flies the opposite direction, dives and scoops up the egg.

Dragon handlers immediately contain the dragon while Harry lands in the judge's area amid loud applause.

"Excellent flying by Mr. Potter-Black!" the announcer calls out. "Now for his scores!"

Severus watches Harry get three 9's and a 4 (by Karkarof). That puts Harry in the lead, which he has to admit he's deserved after being the fastest Champion to get the egg. He watches Harry limp towards the medical tent and wishes he could join him there. He shares a look with Sirius and Remus that tells them he'll be in their quarters waiting anxiously before Sirius and Remus rush off.

Harry, happy to be done, limps towards the medical tent where he is immediately taken to a bed. He looks over and sees Viktor in the bed next to him with a paste on his arm. "Burn salve. I should be fine in another thirty minutes. What happened to you?"

"The dragon's tail caught my leg and I think I have a burn on my back."

"Mr. Potter-Black, please roll onto your front. The dragon's tail caught the back of your leg, and I need to look at that burn," Madame Pomfrey says.

Harry rolls over and flinches slightly. As soon as he has done so Sirius and Remus come rushing in. "Pup! What happened?"

"Just the tail of the dragon and a burn. Madam Pomfrey is fixing me up now."

"Mr. Potter-Black, I need to remove your trousers and shirt. I'd like to spell them off to prevent further injury. Sirius, Remus, you may be in here if Mr. Potter-Black doesn't mind but I'm closing the curtains."

"You guys can stay."

Madame Pomfrey closes the curtains and spells Harry's shirt and pants off. "That burn looks bad and I used the last of the burn salve on Mr. Krum. Dragons. Whoever thought that was a good idea is insane." She quickly sends a Patronus to Severus to get more salve. "Professor Snape should be here soon with more salve. I know he had made extra just in case. I'll start on this cut."

Madame Pomfrey starts working on the cut, and soon Severus comes in with the salve. "Here is the salve Poppy. Would you like me to apply it while you work on that cut? I know it needs applied quickly after the burn."

"Yes please."

"Mr. Potter-Black, it looks like I need to lower your pants slightly. The burn appears to be going down lower. Do you mind?"

"Go ahead. I want it to heal, it burns like crazy."

"I'm sure it does," Severus says. He only has to lower Harry's pants a few inches, and starts applying the balm quickly. He almost smiles hearing Harry's sigh of relief.

"How is your broom Harry?" Sirius asks.

"The bristles are burned. I'll need to see if it can be fixed, I could tell a difference in flying towards the end. If not I'll order a new one."

"Hopefully it can be fixed, I know you love that broom."

"Alright Mr. Potter-Black, the cut is healed. Once Professor Snape is done with the salve you need to stay like that for thirty minutes and then you may leave. You need to re-apply the salve tonight before going to bed and then you should be fine by tomorrow," Madame Pomfrey says before leaving to check on the other Champions.

When Severus is done applying the salve he gives Harry a light smack on his backside. Harry yelps softly, more out of surprise than anything else. "What was that for?"

"For scaring me half to death," Severus says softly.

"I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Which is why you're not in trouble. That was more a reminder that you scared me."

Sirius and Remus are both trying not to laugh at Severus' way of making that come across as him caring. "Next time remind me by telling me," Harry says teasingly.

"Are you going to celebrate with your friends?" Sirius asks

"I'm allowed? I thought I was grounded?"

"You are not grounded today, we gave you the whole day off grounding. We figured you'd want to spend some time with your friends after fighting a dragon. We do expect you in our rooms after dinner."

"In that case I'm going to go see my friends. I'm sure there's a party somewhere and I intend to join it and stuff my face with whatever food they're serving."

"For once I'm not going to tell you to eat healthy. You deserve plates full of junk," Remus says.

Once Harry is allowed to leave, he goes in search of his friends and finds them all in the Great Hall. "Hi, why is the party in here?"

"We wanted somewhere that we could celebrate both you and Cedric," Luna says. "Viktor is over there and even Fleur is around here somewhere. It feels better to celebrate together, since you all did well."

Harry looks around and see Cedric. He walks over quickly. "I'm glad to see you're alright. I saw you had burn salve on you earlier."

Cedric smiles at him. "That salve works wonders. I saw you were injured but you are fine. You are in first place, congratulations."

Harry snorts. "I'm just happy to be alive."

Meanwhile Viktor has seen him and comes over, giving him a big hug. "I'm glad you're alright. It's not right to make a fourteen year old go up against a dragon."

"Thanks Viktor. I'm just happy we all survived. I need to go find some food."

When Harry gets to the food table, which is overflowing with just about anything you can think off, he is attacked by Eric. "Eric! What are you doing here?"

"We all came to watch you. That was so scary!"

"Eric is right. You scared us young man," Henry says from behind the boy.

Harry smiles at the four of them. "I'm happy to see you. And it was very scary. I'm happy to be done."

"I saw you got injured?" Sara says, looking concerned.

Harry nods. "I had a cut on my leg from the dragon's tail and a big burn on my back. I have to reapply burn salve before bed but otherwise I'm healed. I'm going to eat something, I'm starving. Will you join me?"

Soon they are all sitting at a table, eating hungrily. They are joined by Hermione, Viktor, Luna, Cedric, Neville and Dean. "Everyone, this is my solicitor Henry, his wife Sara, son Eric and daughter Lisa. This is Hermione, Viktor, Luna, Cedric, Neville and Dean."

The group enjoys the food and conversations. When it gets closer to dinner, the Headmaster comes in. "Alright, everyone who is not a student or staff member is requested to leave the school. We will be closing the gates in ten minutes. All students please leave the Great Hall so we can prepare for dinner."

Harry says goodbye to the Petersons and walks up to his room to change. He realizes he's still wearing the outfit he had been wearing during the task. When he walks into the living room he is pulled into a hug by Sirius. "Uhh Sirius, I can't breathe."

"Not important."

Harry sends a pleading look to Remus, who is barely containing his laughter. He pries Sirius arms loose. "Sirius, Harry is alive and fine. You need to let him get a shower and get changed. He will be here all evening for you to ensure he's fine."

Harry slips into the bathroom quickly before Sirius realizes he has disappeared. When he comes back out he sits down on the couch, realizing it's not quite time to go down to the Great Hall yet. Five minutes later, Sirius and Remus walk in to see Harry fast asleep.

"He must be exhausted from everything. You probably ate a lot at the party, I really don't want to wake him up for dinner," Sirius says.

"I agree. We'll let him sleep, if he wakes up later we can get him something to eat."

When Severus comes up after dinner, wondering where they all were, he takes one look at Harry and smiles. "I was wondering when he'd fall asleep. He probably didn't sleep well last night," before sitting down next to Harry, which is the only free space left. He gently lifts Harry's head and puts it on his lap.

A few minutes later there's a knock on the door and Sirius goes to open it. "Mr. Krum, how can we help you?"

"I noticed Harry wasn't at dinner sir, and I came to bring him food. I wasn't sure if he'd be eating up here but just in case."

"Please come in and you can see for yourself why he wasn't at dinner."

Viktor walks in and puts the plate down on the table, smiling at Harry. "He must be exhausted. I'll just leave the plate here. It has warming and preservation charms on it so it'll be good whenever he wakes up."

"Thank you Mr. Krum."

"Please call me Viktor. I'll just leave you be."

When Viktor is out of the room, Sirius and Remus share a look. "You know, I thought he was trying to date Hermione."

"Apparently she turned him down. She said that while he's nice and she'd love to be friends, he's not her type. I've also heard rumors he prefers men but tries to date women because Karkarof disapproves of his choices," Severus says.

"And you know this how?"

"Students tend to think I don't care or I'm not listening. I overhear a lot of things."

"So you think he's interested in Harry?"

"I'm not saying that, but he did bring him food."

"We'll leave that up to them. I think Harry is waking up."

"Is it time for dinner yet?" comes the sleepy sounding question from Harry.

Severus chuckles. "It's after dinner already. You had someone bring you a plate though so if you're hungry there's food."

Harry opens his eyes and looks around, only to notice that he's laying on Severus' lap. "Sorry, I didn't realize I fell asleep."

"That's alright. You ready to eat something?"

"Yeah, I am a little hungry. Who brought the food?"

"Viktor."

Harry looks surprised. "What? Why would he do that?"

"He said he noticed you weren't at dinner so he brought food in case you wanted some."

Harry takes the plate of food, casts detection charms and realized the food is still warm. He looks at it in confusion. "What does this mean?"

"It could mean nothing," Sirius says.

"I suppose. I heard Hermione turned him down. He probably just needs a friend," Harry says with a shrug.

Harry eats in silence. When he's done he sits back with a sigh. "At some point I need to figure out what that egg is supposed to do, but for now I'm just glad the Tournament is a third of the way over."

"Hopefully the second task won't be as dangerous," Sirius says with a shudder.

Everyone nods in agreement, but they all know it's not likely.

"Harry, have you figured out yet where your preferences lie?" Sirius asks, sounding almost hesitant.


	35. Chapter 35

AN: There will not be any Mpreg in this (there might be in the sequel), and no explicit scenes even if relationships do develop (just like Sirius &amp; Remus are a couple but I don't go into detail what they do in private).

Chapter 34 recap:

"_Yeah, I am a little hungry. Who brought the food?"_

"_Viktor."_

_Harry looks surprised. "What? Why would he do that?"_

"_He said he noticed you weren't at dinner so he brought food in case you wanted some."_

_Harry takes the plate of food, casts detection charms and realizes the food is still warm. He looks at it in confusion. "What does this mean?"_

"_It could mean nothing," Sirius says. _

"_I suppose. I heard Hermione turned him down. He probably just needs a friend," Harry says with a shrug._

_Harry eats in silence. When he's done he sits back with a sigh. "At some point I need to figure out what that egg is supposed to do, but for now I'm just glad the Tournament is a third of the way over."_

"_Hopefully the second task won't be as dangerous," Sirius says with a shudder._

_Everyone nods in agreement, but they all know it's not likely. _

"_Harry, have you figured out yet where your preferences lie?" Sirius asks, sounding almost hesitant._

Chapter 35

"Sirius!" Harry says, embarrassed to be asked that like that.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed over Harry. I'm just curious if you've even thought about it," Sirius says with a slight smile.

"I've thought about it but not come to any conclusions. Besides, I want to have kids which isn't possible unless I marry a woman so it's a moot point."

"Harry, two men can have children in the Wizarding World. Remus and I can't because he's a werewolf, but you could. Also, there is always adoption so don't make that a reason not to be with someone."

"What? You're joking."

"No, I'm not. I'm not trying to embarrass you but if you want to talk about it, we can."

"I'm not just sure. I mean, I've thought Cho Chang was cute, but I've also thought that of Viktor. Then there's that Hufflepuff Chaser, I can't help but look at him during matches. I'm just confused about it I suppose."

"It's possible to like both men and women. In the Wizarding World it is believed that love is flued. You are attracted to the person and their magic, not the gender. Your magical core will draw towards those with compatible magical cores. Off course looks and personality also plays a part, but gender generally doesn't. In the muggle world it is looked down upon to be with someone your own gender, and this often stems from religious beliefs. It is believed that marriage should be between a man and a woman, the way God intended. A big part of this is reproduction, which in the muggle world isn't possible between two men or two women. In the magical world it is also not possible between two women, but they often use donors just like muggle women could. Because the magical world generally doesn't believe in God, and because two men can get pregnant, nobody sees a problem with relationships like that," Severus explains.

Harry looks shocked. "So I'm not weird if I fall for a guy?"

"No, you're not weird if you fall for a guy. I know you're used to Remus and I being together, but you might want to talk to Charlie Weasley. He should still be around for another couple days. He is currently dating one of the other dragon handlers. I know he dated both men and women when at Hogwarts," Sirius says.

"Alright, I might do that."

"So what are your thoughts on Viktor?" Sirius asks.

Harry shrugs. "He's nice, and I have to admit he's good looking. We connected right from the start and I enjoy hanging out with him. We never run out of things to talk about either. But him bringing me food doesn't mean he's interested in me in that way."

"Well, take your time to think about it. If you end up going out with him, they have to be double or group dates, I do not want you going off by yourself. Also, while I believe you should wait until you are older, if it gets to the point where you are sexually active let Severus know and he will brew you a contraceptive potion you have to take once a month. It would prevent you both from impregnating someone else or becoming pregnant yourself, so it doesn't matter in what way you are sexually active," Remus says. "We will also not ask for details, so you don't have to tell us why you need the potion, just that you do."

Harry is blushing by this point. "I'll keep that in mind."

"Also, I want to give you a heads up that I have picked up my Lordship rings and it will be announced at breakfast in the morning. It will also be in the Prophet," Severus says.

"That is wonderful! So I should approach you after the announcement, correct?"

"Yes, that would be the proper protocol."

"So once you are officially announced, you are allowed to leave Hogwarts without having to request leave and give a reason, correct?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Well, while it might not be technically considered leaving the school, I thought you might be interested in going down into the Chamber of Secrets with me."

"What makes you think I'll allow you to go there?"

"I just thought you might be interested in the 45 foot Basilisk that's down there."

Severus' eyes widen. "45 foot? I did not know it was that big! Do you have any idea what that would be worth if it's preserved?"

"No clue, I just know it would make good potions ingredients. I've heard they are hard to get."

"The last Basilisk found was 20 foot and that was almost 10 years ago. Basilisk ingredients are incredibly valuable because they're so rare. Harry, if that Basilisk is preserved it's worth millions if auctioned off."

"Well, then we should go down there. If you harvest it I'll let you keep whatever you want to keep as payment for your help. I'll get the goblins to auction of the rest of the parts."

Severus is staring at Harry in shock. Sirius laughs. "I think Severus is speechless. That has to be a first. And just so you know, we're going with you if you do this."

"How about we go tomorrow?" Harry asks.

Everyone looks at each other, Severus not doing more than nodding. "But that means you are going to bed young man," Remus says.

"Really? I let you all go down to the Chamber with me and I get an early bedtime in return? Hardly seems fair."

"Well for starters you wouldn't be going down there without us. That would be considered putting yourself in danger which would get you in a lot of trouble. You wouldn't even have to worry about who to date because you'd be grounded until at least the end of the school year."

"Fine, be that way. I'll go to bed. Severus, you should close your mouth before you catch flies."

Harry laughs as he jumps out of the way of the smack Severus aims at him, before wishing everyone a good night and going to sleep. He knows the next day will be tiring and busy, but he also knows it will be well worth it. He already knows what he's going to do with the money. For starters he's going to set up trust funds for Fred and George, and a vault that they can use to start their own joke shop like they want. He has seen some of the things they've come up with, and has a feeling that in the years to come everyone is going to need something to laugh about.

Next he's going to set up a trust fund for Hermione, to help her pay for any further education or apprenticeship she wants to do. He knows her parents can afford Hogwarts but also knows it's a strain on them. He wants Hermione, who he believes has the potential to go far in life and truly make a difference, to have the opportunity to do whatever she believes in.

Last, he wants to set up a fund for research into the Wolfsbane potion. He knows Severus has the money, but he wants to help and maybe allow Severus to expand on his testing and research.

The next morning at breakfast everyone is loud and cheerful in the aftermath of the excitement from the first task. When Dumbledore calls for silence, it takes a minute for it to actually get quiet.

"I have an announcement to make. You will find out by reading the Daily Prophet this morning, however, I felt I should explain it to you myself. One of our professors has picked up his Lordship rings. Please join me in wishing Professor Snape well as Lord Prince."

Once the applause dies down, Dumbledore continues. "This also means you should now be addressing him as Lord Prince, not Professor Snape, unless he tells you otherwise. We will be lenient today should you forget, but by tomorrow we expect everyone to follow this. Also, as Lord Prince will have duties outside of Hogwarts, he might not always be as available as he has been. He has therefore elected to forgo his duties as Head of Slytherin House. Please join me in congratulating Professor Sinistra as the new Head of Slytherin."

Shocked gasps are heard from the Slytherin table, before polite applause starts. As soon as the headmaster sits down, murmurs go up at every table. Harry immediately stands up and makes his way over to the Head Table. He stops in front of Severus, his posture formal.

"I wish you well Lord Prince," Harry says before nodding politely.

Severus stands up and nods back. "Thank you Lord Potter-Black. As we are both Lords, you may call me Severus outside of class and professor or sir during class."

"Thank you Severus. You may call me Harry outside of class and Mr. Potter-Black during class."

Once Harry has returned to his seat, he notices none of the Heirs have gone up yet. He has a feeling they need a minute to get over the shock.

"Severus, are you sure it's wise to allow a student to call you by your first name?" Albus asks.

"It is proper Albus. Protocol dictates that Lords usually call each other by their first names unless there's a really good reason not to. To not allow it would be indication on my part that I am openly against him, which would politically cripple me. I am not stupid, and if allowing him to call me by my first name wins me political favor, I will do so."

"I must say I fully understand that. I should have known you had a reason that was to better yourself in some way, you are a Slytherin after all. It appears your resignation as Head of House has shocked your House."

Severus looks over and sees the genuine shocked looks he's getting. "They will adjust. And just because I'm not their Head of House, doesn't mean I'm not here if they need me. I have already moved into the Potions Master quarters in the teacher's wing, and set up the door in my office to go to the correct place."

"Excellent. Oh it looks like you're being approached again."

Slowly the other Heirs shake off their stupor and approach Severus. None of them get permission to call him anything other than Lord Prince. Severus has decided he prefers to be called Lord Prince by the students as opposed to Professor Snape.

Harry almost has to laugh at seeing Slytherin House so in shock. It's rare that they are all speechless. He quickly finishes breakfast before heading upstairs. He knows Severus' new rooms are next to Sirius' and they have created a magical door to connect the two. The door is charmed to only be visible if you know about it.

As soon as Harry gets to his room he changes into old clothes, knowing he'll likely get dirty. He pulls on one of his old school robes and sits down to wait for the others. He doesn't have to wait long, and he can tell they are all excited. They disillusion themselves and make their way down to the second floor bathroom, where they ward the door to not allow anyone entry, not even the headmaster. Anyone who approaches the bathroom will forget why they are even on the second floor to begin with.

Harry opens the Chamber and jumps down quickly. "Harry James! Don't you scare me like that by jumping into a big hole!" Sirius yells after him.

"Just jump down Sirius! It's fine!"

Harry casts a cushioning charm and waits for all of them to join him. Severus immediately notices the big snake skin and uses his wand to roll it up, before shrinking it and putting it in a preservation bag. They carefully move enough rocks so they can all get through.

When Harry opens the door to the main Chamber, the first thing they all notice is that there's no smell. "There has to be charms on this place, otherwise we'd smell the rotting Basilisk."

Harry steps into the Chamber and starts walking to where the Basilisk is, only to realize he's not being followed. He looks back only to see all three of them staring around in awe. "We can come back and take pictures later, you want to see a snake or what?"

That seems to get their attention focused back on why they're there, and Harry leads them to the middle of the Chamber. They all notice the puddle of dried blood and ink, along with the Basilisk fang on the ground. "Is this where?" Sirius asks softly, not able to finish the question.

Harry nods and swallows. "yes it is."

Meanwhile Severus is staring at the Basilisk. "You fought that?"

"After Fawkes poked out its eyes, yes."

"Why don't we get to work?" Remus suggests.

Severus starts delegating tasks, and soon they are magically lifting the snake so Severus can get the skin, before helping him roll, preserve and label everything. They work diligently for hours, wanting to get this done before lunch if possible.

With there being four strong wizards, they manage to get everything done. "We'll need to get this to the goblins today, we don't want to risk anyone getting their hands on it. I can do it if you trust me enough," Severus says.

"That's fine Severus. Have them set up the auction and deposit the earnings into a new vault in my name." He then explains what he wants to do with the money. "Don't forget to keep what you want to keep, I don't care how much it is."

Severus nods and they quickly make their way out. Harry notices an inscription at the bottom of the tunnel, and when he reads it out loud in parseltongue the slide turns into stairs. "Well that's easier than flying out."

They get back to their rooms unnoticed, and Severus immediately disappears through the floo. Harry, Remus and Sirius get cleaned up before heading down to the Great Hall for lunch, all three of them hungry after all the hard work.

At lunch Viktor sits down with Harry. "Hi Harry."

Harry smiles at him. "Hi Viktor. Thank you for dinner last night. It was nice to have a warm plate waiting for me when I woke up."

"You're welcome Harry. Would you like to go for a walk or go flying after lunch?"

Harry shakes his head. "Normally I'd say yes but I'm still grounded. You might be able to get me off grounding if you ask one of my guardians though."

Viktor looks at the Head Table, slightly scared. "I'd love to be able to go outside and just walk around the lake," Harry says with a wistful smile.

Before he realizes what's happening Viktor gets up from the table and walks towards Sirius. Harry shares a shocked look with Hermione, who is merely grinning at him.

Up at the Head Table Sirius had noticed Viktor sitting down. Suddenly Viktor is coming towards him and he's curious what's going on. "Mr. Black?"

"Yes Mr. Krum?"

"I would like to take Harry for a walk this afternoon but he has informed me he is grounded. While I understand you have just reasons for his punishment, I was wondering if you would let him off for just a little while so we could go on our walk? We would bring some of his friends so we would not be alone."

"What are your intentions with my godson?"

Viktor flushes slightly. "I like him very much. He is kind, funny and charming. He is a powerful wizard while also one of the most humble wizards I know. I want to get to know him better."

"Are you talking romantically or as friends?"

"Romantically sir. I don't know if he is interested in that, but I'd like to try."

"Because you are so honest with me I'm going to allow it this once. After lunch he has two hours before he has to be back in his rooms. If he is late, I will personally assign you detention with Mr. Filch. I do not care that you are not a student here. Also, if anything happens to Harry, I will personally make your life miserable. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes sir, very much."

"Enjoy your walk."

Viktor walks back to the table, missing the amused look Sirius and Remus share.

"You have two hours after lunch. If you are late, I get detention. Would you like to go on a walk around the lake with me?"

"I would, yes. Hermione, would you come with us?"

"yes I would. Would you mind if I asked Cedric to come?"

"Not at all, go ahead."

Hermione gets up and walks over to Cedric, and they see him nodding in agreement. While Viktor's focus is on Hermione, Harry uses his magic to gently test Viktor's Aura. It glows white, and Harry can't quite contain his smile. He quickly pens a note and sends it to Sirius to let him know.

As soon as they are done eating the four of them head out of the castle towards the lake. Hermione and Cedric are walking slightly behind Harry and Viktor, well aware that they were invited as chaperones and nothing more.

"Viktor, I hope you don't mind me being straightforward, but what are you hoping to achieve on this walk?"

Viktor smiles at Harry. "I don't mind. I want to get to know you better. I don't know if you are even interested, but I have been intrigued by you, and attracted to you since the moment we met in the Great Hall. Ever since that day I've enjoyed the time we spend together. You are kind, funny and one of the most humble wizards I've ever met. You are intelligent and it shows in conversation. You are powerful yet you don't flaunt it."

Harry is blushing when Viktor stops talking. "You really see me that way?"

"Yes I do. If you don't mind, what do you think of me?"

"I think you are very kind and caring. You are smart and quick witted which makes for good conversation. We have a lot in common. I'd like to get to know you better but I have to be honest. I didn't understand the difference between muggle and wizard relationships until recently. I grew up with muggles who were against two men being together. I'm also incredibly busy with school, extra lessons and the Tournament and I don't know how much time I have for other things. I also have a tendency to find myself grounded or in detention regularly which doesn't help. I'm worried that at the end of year you go back to Durmstrang and I stay here. You still have a year left at Durmstrang, but I still have three years after this year. How would that work? I don't want to get close to you and then have you disappear to a different country."

"I will make you a promise. If we get close and this works out, I will transfer to Hogwarts for my last year. I do not particularly like Karkarof, and Durmstrang isn't the same it was before he became Headmaster."

"You would do that? Your parents would let you?"

Viktor nods. "They would. They allowed me to become a professional Quidditch player, even though it meant I'd go through school slower and be at Durmstrang eight years instead of seven. They want me to be happy and if I told them being here would make me happy, they would allow it."

"I would like to try. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work and you leave at the end of the year. But you have to understand I have a lot of secrets about my life, and there might be things I can't tell you."

"I understand. I will accept that, as long as you don't keep secrets that affect us together."

"I won't."

They have made their way as far as the wards allow and turn around, to see Hermione and Cedric holding hands. "Are you two ready to head back?"

Viktor answers. "We have to. We've been gone an hour and you can't be late. I don't want detention and Mr. Black is scary."

Harry chuckles. "You'll have to get used to him."

"Are you together?" Hermione asks.

Harry and Viktor both nod. "Good, we can go on double dates."

Harry smiles at her. "you two are dating?"

Cedric nods. "Just so you know, if you hurt you, you will be dealing with me. She's like my sister." Harry says.

Cedric nods in agreement. "Understood."

They walk back and Viktor drops Harry off at the teacher's wing right on time. "I will see you around. I'm grounded for another week, but after that I should have more free time."

"We still have meals. I will see you at dinner."

As soon as Harry steps into the common room he is ushered to a couch by Sirius, and surrounded by Sirius, Filius, Remus and Severus. They are the only ones in there. "How was your date?"

"Who says it was a date?"

"He told me it was. Now answer the question."

Harry recaps the walk quickly, leaving out details. Sirius smiles at him. "I had a feeling it would go well."

Harry nods. "He also understands how busy I am and that I won't always have time, especially when my evil guardians ground me or my evil teachers give me detention."

This gets a chuckle out of all of them. "Maybe this will be extra incentive to stay out of trouble. And don't forget, you are not to be alone with him."

"No worries, I think Hermione is already planning plenty of double dates."

"With whom?" Filius asks.

"Her and Cedric. They came with us and apparently Cedric has had a thing for Hermione for a while."

"Teenage hormones," Severus says, shaking his head. "If he becomes a distraction I will have no problem forbidding you from seeing him."

"I know I know. I'm going to go do homework, since I have nothing better to do," Harry says before walking to his room.

"I'm happy for him. He deserves to have normal teenage experiences like dating," Remus says.

"I did not see Hermione and Cedric coming though," Sirius says.

"Neither did I. Mr. Diggory appeared to be interested in Ms. Chang," Filius says.

"Oh you didn't hear? They went on a date and it went badly," Severus says.

"How do you keep hearing everything?"

"Like I've said before, students think I don't care and I have exceptionally good hearing."

"It's a bat thing, they can hear at great distances," Harry says from behind them before sitting down on the couch with his homework.

Severus cuffs him on the back of the head. "You're lucky we're in public young man."

"I know, the truth hurts."

After a quick glance to ensure they are still alone, Severus sends a tickling hex at Harry. It doesn't take long for Harry to have abandoned his books and be on the ground laughing. When it sounds like Harry is out of breath Severus releases the hex. Sirius, Remus and Filius are watching in amusement while Harry scrambles back onto the couch. "Not fair. If I hexed you I'd be in detention for a month!"

"At the very least. Seems completely fair to me. Now weren't you going to do homework?"

"I brought it out here because I wanted to ask about this Charms essay. Would you mind looking it over professor Flitwick? I think I understood the concept but I just want to make sure."

"You may call me Filius in private Harry. Much easier and much less of a mouthful. Hand it over, I'll look at it."

Harry waits nervously while Filius reads the essay. He hands it back with a smile. "This is excellent Harry, I don't know why you doubted it. It's at least worth an O, and considering it's Seventh Year level work that is impressive."

Severus snatches the essay out of Harry's hand, reads it and hands it to Sirius. They all read the essay. "This is excellent Harry," Remus says.

"Glad you all think so. Severus, can I convince you to proofread my potions essay?"

Severus holds out his hand and Harry hands him the essay, before giving Sirius his History of Magic essay and Remus his DADA essay. He gets all of them back without corrections. "Well, I guess I'm done with my homework. That was easier than I thought. When do we start extra lessons?"

"We cancelled them because of the First task yesterday, assuming you needed time for homework. Since you're done with that we can go over dating protocols if you'd like?"

"I'm sorry, dating protocols?"

"Yes. As a Lord, there are certain steps that need followed. For starters, you have to publicly announce your relationship. This is to ward off anyone who is interested in you, which I'm sure there are plenty. It lets everyone know you're off the market. While you are a little young for that, there is no age specification for that. Also, while dating, he will be required to come as your partner to any formal events you attend. Last, you are to have a chaperone at all times until a formal engagement is announced to the public."

Harry puts his head in his hands. "You mean to tell me I have to announce to the world I have my first boyfriend?"

"Unfortunately, yes. You should let Lord Peterson know and he will write the press release so it's in tomorrow's Prophet. That gives you enough time to warn Viktor."

Harry looks at the clock, and realizes he only has a few minutes until dinner. He quickly pulls out some parchment and writes a note to Lord Peterson. "Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

"Can you deliver this note to Lord Peterson?"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

"I'm going to dinner. I suppose I might as well tell him now. Sometimes I hate this Lordship stuff."

When Harry is gone, Sirius looks at Remus. "Some of those protocols are ridiculous. I mean, if they were engaged I'd understand the announcement, but dating?"

"It is since he's 14, but whenever a Lord is older, it is done to avoid having anyone alienate themselves by going after a Lord who is taken and offending them. Harry will handle this though, he always does."

When Harry walks into the Great Hall he sits down at the Gryffindor table with Hermione. "Just so you know, because I'm a Lord protocol dictates I announce my relationship. I'm about to tell Viktor it'll be in the Prophet tomorrow."

"Oh Harry, I'm so sorry!"

Viktor chooses that moment to walk up and sits down next to Harry. "What's going on?"

"Sirius has just informed me that according to protocol, I have to publicly announce that we are dating. It will be in the Prophet tomorrow morning. I'm sorry."

"It's alright. I understand that things are done a certain way, and I knew things wouldn't necessarily be easy dating a Lord."

"Still, I'm sorry. Also, if I have to go to any official events protocol dictates you have to accompany me."

"That is fine. I'm used to official events as a Quidditch player. Don't worry about it Harry, I'm used to being stared at and written about."

"Thank you for being so understanding."

Viktor squeezes Harry's hand before they simultaneously cast detection charms, grinning as they do so. Hermione just shakes her head.

The next morning Harry walks into the Great Hall, dreading what he knows will be in the paper. Lord Peterson had floo called them the evening before to let them know he had sent out the press release, and to congratulate Harry. He said he had met Viktor once at an event and had been impressed by the boy.

Viktor is already waiting for Harry and they sit at the Gryffindor table. "Don't be nervous Harry. It won't change anything between us, and people will talk no matter what once they see us together. I'm right here."

Harry nods and they start eating quickly. The Hall fills up, and soon the mail starts coming in. Gasps are heard around the Great Hall, and when Harry gets his Prophet he realizes why. Once again, his picture is on the front page.

HARRY POTTER - BLACK COURTING INTERNATIONAL QUIDDITCH STAR VIKTOR KRUM

By: Rita Skeeter

Late last night we at the Daily Prophet received a very exciting press release from Lord Potter-Black's solicitor. In it, it was revealed that as of yesterday afternoon, Lord Potter-Black is courting Mr. Viktor Krum. No other details were given. Both Lord Potter-Black and Mr. Krum have been saying playing Quidditch together since the arrival of Mr. Krum at Hogwarts, and they are regularly seen around the school. While Lord Potter-Black is three years younger than Mr. Krum, we have no doubt Mr. Krum asked permission to take the young Lord out on a date. According to a source at Hogwarts, Mr. Krum and Lord Potter-Black went on a walk out by the lake together with two of their friends, who now also appear to be in a relationship. Hermione Granger and Cedric Diggory appeared to have been chaperoning the young couple on what was likely their first date after Mr. Krum was seen talking to Sirius Black in the Great Hall. We will continue to follow this young couple as their relationship develops.

Harry looks apologetically at Hermione. "I'm sorry, I didn't think she'd mention you."

Hermione waves it off. "It's alright, people would find out soon anyway. She was positive about you two though, that's good. You never know with Skeeter."

Harry doesn't have time to respond as Ron looks at them from down the table. "We don't want your kind at our table! Go sit somewhere else!"

Harry looks shocked, especially knowing that Ron's brother is dating a guy. "Mr. Weasley! That kind of behavior and talk is not acceptable at Hogwarts and especially in Gryffindor! Twenty points and a week detention with Mr. Filch. Don't let me hear anything like that again young man." Professor McGonnagal says, looking furious.

"Where did that come from?" Harry asks in surprise.

"I think he's jealous," Hermione says. "He wants to be friends with Viktor and now you're courting him, while I'm dating Cedric and I think Ron might be interested in me. He doesn't always think before he says something, and based on the looks on Fred and George's face they aren't happy with him."

"I guess. So why is what we have called courting and what you have called dating?"

"The old fashioned belief is that a Lord doesn't date, he or she courts with the purpose of finding a partner for life. You are not allowed to be alone and will always have a chaperone. Cedric and Hermione are allowed to be alone and can 'casually' date without the purpose of finding a partner for life. Back in the old days you didn't date, you courted," Fred says after sliding over towards them. "And forgive our little brother, we will have a serious talk with him later. He knows about Charlie and that was completely unacceptable."

"Thanks Fred."

"Anytime little brother. Now Viktor, we might like you but if you hurt our little brother you will be dealing with us. And you might have heard our reputation, but that is just child's play. Understood?"

"Understood. It's dangerous being with you Harry. First Mr. Black, now the twins."

"Don't worry. You have nothing to fear as long as you keep me happy, so how about passing me that plate of bacon?" Harry says with a cheeky grin.

"Oh, that's good to know," Viktor says with a laugh while grabbing a piece of bacon and putting it in Harry's mouth. "Maybe that will keep you quiet."

"Shut me up with food? Seems effective," Harry says after swallowing. "I was hoping for more than one piece though."

Viktor hands over the plate and Harry grabs a handful. They completely ignore everyone staring at them, having both gotten used to stares over the years. When it's time to leave for class Viktor walks with Harry before heading to his own class.

To Harry's surprise, nobody says anything to him but he's not complaining. After classes he reluctantly heads back his room to work on homework. He is really looking forward to the day he is no longer grounded. He grumpily walks into their living room and through to his bedroom, shutting the door loudly. He doesn't see Sirius and Remus.

"It's tempting to let him off grounding early," Sirius says.

"We have to stay firm Sirius. Letting him off early doesn't teach him anything."

"I know, but I understand how he feels."

"I do too, but it would just teach him that being upset over a punishment will get him out of it. He's still a teenager and he'll be moody at times for no good reason."

"Being grounded is pretty good reason," Harry says. "Look, I know nothing is going to get me out of being grounded. But that doesn't mean I have to be happy about it so there's no need for you to argue about it."

Harry walks through to the kitchen, grabs a butterbeer out of the fridge and walks back to his room, closing his door loudly again.

"Welcome to teenage attitude," Severus says with a grin. "I came to see if Harry has time to do extra potions tonight."

"Good luck. He's in a mood."

"Yeah I could tell. If you hear loud noises, one of us is killing the other," Severus says before walking into Harry's room. He sits down on the bed.

"You want to talk about what's bothering you?"

"Nothing is bothering me. I'm just tired of seeing the inside of these rooms."

"This has nothing to do with Viktor?"

"No. He is training for the Tournament this afternoon so I wouldn't see him anyway."

"Have you given the second task any thought?"

"No, I've just sort of been pretending it will never happen."

"You know that's not reasonable."

"I am very well aware, thank you for pointing out the obvious. Now I'd like to get back to my homework."

"I came in here to see if you are alright with an extra potions lesson tonight?"

"No I'm not. Our lesson is on Wednesday."

"I have to be at Gringotts Wednesday to help the goblins value the Basilisk ingredients. They'll be up for auction Thursday."

"Well then we'll just have to skip this week won't we."

"Alright, if that's how you feel. I just wanted to check with you first. Cheer up, only four more days."

Severus walks back into the living room and shakes his head. "Definitely teenage attitude. No potions lesson at all this week. And it has nothing to do with Viktor who has training this afternoon, but everything to do with the walls of these rooms."

"Is he still able to sit down to do his homework?" Sirius asks, only half teasing.

"What do you mean?"

"You mean to tell me he gave you attitude and you didn't do anything about it?"

"I've decided that he's a teenager and if he wants to sulk in his room he is free to do so. Now if he keeps this up for days I might do something about it."

Harry keeps up the attitude until the end of his grounding. He is his usual happy self around his friends, but the moment he steps into the teacher's wing the attitude comes back. Friday, which is the last day Harry is grounded, Sirius is ready to snap at him. The night before he had sent Harry to his room when lessons didn't go well, and now Harry is laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Harry, do you want to come out and play chess?"

"No."

"Alright, maybe play something else?"

"No thanks."

Sirius sighs. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong."

"Then why are you giving short answers and not talking to us?"

"I'm not in the mood to talk."

"You haven't been in the mood to talk all week. Where is this attitude coming from?"

"I'm bored of being in here and not being able to do anything with my friends. I want to go flying and I want to hang out in the all house common room. You know how much it sucks to hear all the stories of all the fun things your friends are doing while you're stuck in your room with just adults for company?"

"It's called punishment for a reason Harry."

"I'm aware of that, thanks. Next time, just spank me and get it over with. This grounding crap sucks and ruins my life. What little I have of it anyway."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, I'm already busy. I have to be on guard against everyone who is not let in on all our secrets, which is pretty much everyone. I can't be honest with my friends. I can't be honest with my boyfriend. I have extra lessons so that hopefully I won't die in a war we all know is coming. I have people trying to kill me every year. I just want to have a year where all I have to focus on is school and Quidditch. Heck I can't even date like a normal person! Did you know that we get followed by a group of people every time we go somewhere? They're all hoping to catch our first kiss so they can report it to the Prophet and make money. I know we are supposed to have a chaperone, and I don't mind if it's a friend, but half the students in this school make it their mission to be close to us when we're together."

"Harry I can't pretend to know what you're going through because I don't. I do know that it is hard on you, as it would be on anyone. You said Viktor's Aura is white, which is excellent. I trust that if you guys stay together, there will come a point where you can tell him everything. But you can't let it affect everything, you have to see the positives as well. You have amazing friends who would do anything for you. You have a boyfriend who truly cares and who is a great guy, and don't think I haven't noticed how he makes sure you eat at meals. You have Remus, Severus, Filius and I who all love you and care about you, and all four of us would do anything for you. Don't push us away because life is hard. And damnit Harry you are going to survive this war. Now you are going to get your butt off this bed and you are going to come out into the common area and play games. I don't care if I have to drag you there kicking and screaming, we are going to all spend time together."

Harry looks doubtful. "I know and I'm sorry I've been so grouchy." Seeing that Sirius is serious he gets up from the bed. As soon as he does Sirius lands two hard smacks on his backside. "Ow! What was that for?"

"The horrible attitude you've had. You will apologize to Remus and Severus as well."

"I will. I'm sorry," Harry says, rubbing his backside. Those smacks had really stung!

Harry and Sirius join Remus in the common room but he stands up instead. "We're going somewhere else to play games. We won't get privacy here." Just as he says that the headmaster walks in. They walk back into their rooms before crossing over into Severus' rooms, who raises an eyebrow. "No common room?"

"headmaster," is all Sirius says.

"Filius mentioned he had heard Albus tell Minerva he was thinking about spending more time in the staff common room to promote bonding, or something like that," Remus says.

"Severus, Remus. I'm sorry for being a brat this week. I shouldn't have taken my frustration out on you all."

"It's alright Harry. I take it you've worked it out or at least talked about it?"

Harry nods. "I talked to Sirius."

"And I gave him a stinging reminder what will happen if he cops an attitude again."

This earns him a glare from Harry, which he ignores. "So what game are we playing?"

"I vote Exploding Snap," Sirius says.

"I second that," Harry says.

"I suppose I can live through a game of that," Remus says with a sigh.

As much as Remus and Severus grumble about having to play, by the end of the second game they are all laughing. They call Dobby for tea and sit back on the couch.

"Harry, I want to show you something," Severus says before getting up and motioning for Harry to follow him. He walks into his guest room and steps aside. "As you can see I've decorated it identical to your room in Sirius' quarters. This room is yours, I want you to always feel welcome here."

"Won't you get in trouble if Dumbledore sees this?"

Severus shakes his head. "Dumbledore doesn't have access to these rooms, and even if he were to be in here with me it would just be the living room or maybe kitchen. I've also had Dobby's help in hiding this room. Unless you know it's there because I told you, you can't see it. Not even House Elves can see it, with the exception of Dobby. It appears the castle likes you and created this room after I moved in."

Harry hugs Severus, holding back the tear in his eye. "Thank you Severus. Can I stay here during the Full Moon?"

"You can stay here anytime you want, but I will be requiring you to stay here during the Full Moon."

"Thank you. I love it."

When they get back to the couches, Sirius and Remus smile at Harry. "Do you like it?"

"I love it. You knew?"

"We did. We were waiting for you to improve your attitude before showing you. Did you tell them about Viktor's Aura?"

"Oh yea. I tested it last week. It's white."

"That's excellent Harry," Severus says. "Now I think we need to find a way for you two to spend time together without being followed. I've noticed that, but there wasn't much to do about it while you were still grounded and only saw him at meals or when walking to and from class."

"He told me at dinner that he wants to take me on a proper date to Hogsmeade tomorrow. Do you think that'd be possible?"

"It is since it's a Hogsmeade weekend, but you will have to take friends and we will all three be around."

"Hermione said she'd come with Cedric. We want to try that new Italian restaurant that just opened last month."

"I've heard it's a very nice place. Whose idea was that?" Remus asks.

"Viktor's. One of the Durmstrang students went on a date there and said it was really nice. You really don't mind?"

"Harry, you are courting. Off course we don't mind. As long as you let us know when you need the potion," Sirius ads teasingly.

"Dad! We haven't even kissed yet!" Harry suddenly realizes what he's said and bolts out of the room and into his new bedroom, burying his face in his pillow.

"Did he just say what I think he said?" A stunned Sirius asks.

"He did. Honestly, I've been waiting for it to happen. He's never had a father figure and you're as close as he's ever gotten to having one. Technically you are partially his father, since you blood adopted him as an infant. As you can tell, he didn't intend for that to slip out."

"Should I go talk to him?"

"You should. He's probably thinking the worst right now," Severus says.

Sirius walks into Harry's room and sits next to him on the bed. "Turn around and look at me pup."

Harry shakes his head, or at least tries to without moving his face off the pillow. "Pup, I'm not upset."

"You're not?" comes the muffled reply.

"No, off course not. The fact that you see me like your father, and it came out automatically, is an honor. I know I blood adopted you as an infant, but I never thought I'd hear anyone call me dad. You shocked me, but I'm not upset."

Harry slowly turns his head. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"You were thinking that you've never had a dad before. You were thinking that I act as if I'm your dad. You have started to feel like I'm your dad, and in your mind you've probably caught yourself calling me dad several times before."

Harry nods. "I know you're not though. I'm emancipated, I don't have parents."

"If it makes you uncomfortable you don't have to call me dad, but I don't mind if you do. It will not change anything between us. I'm still your guardian, and you are still legally and financially emancipated. Hogwarts requires you to have a parent or guardian on record regardless of your legal status, and I'm still listed as such. Now how about we go back out there and have some tea?"

"You don't think Severus and Remus will be upset I didn't call them that? I mean, they're my guardians too."

"No they won't be. Like I said, nothing changed. You are still emancipated and we are still just here to provide you with the guidance you very much need."

"Hey I don't need that much guidance."

"Really? What about sneaking off during a Full Moon or breaking curfew? How about all the other trouble you've already gotten into this year? You are fourteen, it is normal for you to break the rules. But what do you think would happen if we didn't do anything about it because you are emancipated according to the law?"

"I'd probably break rules more often whenever I felt I needed to."

"And how would that benefit you?"

"It wouldn't. I'd grow up to spoiled like Malfoy."

"And do you want to be spoiled like Malfoy?"

"No."

"Would you rather have guardians here who correct your mistakes so you learn not to make them?"

"I do, but I hate being punished."

"Everyone hates being punished, it's the whole purpose of punishment."

Harry gets up from the bed. "I suppose. How do you deal with that at your age?"

"I just remind myself it helps me be a better person, because it really does."

When Harry and Sirius walk back into the living room, Severus and Remus act as if nothing happened. "Harry, I have to ask. Earlier you said you'd rather be spanked then grounded. Were you serious?"

"I hate being grounded. I already have so little free time, having that taken away as well sucks. being able to fly and hanging out with my friends reminds me that I'm still a kid and that I can still act like one. No, I don't want to be spanked, but if I had to choose I'd probably choose that every time."

"We'll keep that in mind. For now lets focus on staying out of trouble."

"I intend to. This weekend I need to figure out that stupid egg."

"How about we do that during lessons on Sunday since you're going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

"That's fine. Oh, did I tell you I tested Dumbledore's Aura?"

"No you didn't," Severus says.

"Well it's not really surprising. It's black." They all nod in agreement.

"How did Karkarof take the news that you and Viktor are together?" Severus asks.

"He was upset. Viktor didn't really want to talk about it but he was fidgeting in his seat that day at lunch so I think he got a whipping. I don't understand why Karkarof is allowed to do that on Hogwarts grounds."

"Actually, the ship is considered Bulgarian grounds. The water underneath is Hogwarts, and Karkarof isn't allowed to discipline his students on Hogwarts ground, but the ship is his jurisdiction."

"So if Viktor never went back onto the ship, he wouldn't get beaten?"

"No meddling Harry. Karkarof would find a way to get him back on that ship since he's still a Durmstrang student and it'd be that much worse for him. No, I can see by the look in your eyes that you are planning something. I forbid you from doing anything. Viktor is seventeen and capable of standing up for himself."

Harry crosses his arms in a huff. "That's not fair."

"Life isn't always fair. You have to trust him to stand up for himself. I understand it's hard but we can't afford an international political scandal right now."

"Fine, I'll stay out of it. But that doesn't mean I'm happy about it."

"Duly noted. Another round of Exploding Snap?"


	36. Chapter 36

AN: Prince Harry (yes, THE prince Harry) was born on 9/15/84. I know that makes him younger than Harry by 4 years. For this storyline to work, I have made them the same age and have changed his birthday to 9/15/79. I had a purpose for introducing him into the story, and for some reason had thought he was about Harry's age. When actually looking it up I realized I was wrong, but I don't want to change the storyline because it would be a huge change. To make it less confusing with having 2 Harry's, I've also changed his name to Alexander (Alex).

Also, eventually Harry will do something about Dumbledore, but they need more prove and more support before they can be successful in that.

I know some aren't happy about the Harry/Viktor pairing. Viktor will not be in the story more now than he was before (he was already in it quite a bit) and I will not focus on their relationship. I will focus on their relationship more in the sequel, or maybe write a one-shot side story for it, but relationships in general are not a major focus in this. They are a setup for the sequel (the sequel will cover the years after the war, this story will continue until the end of the war). I have the entire story outlined, and everything in this happens for a reason and not everything is as it seems at first.

Chapter 36

Breakfast on Saturday was a loud affair. All the older students are excited for Hogsmeade, and excited for a chance to get away from the school and have some fun. Harry is enjoying breakfast with Viktor, Luna and Helena at the Ravenclaw table when Ron comes up behind him. "Harry, can we talk for a minute?"

Harry looks back and sees that Ron looks sincere so he nods. "Yeah, we can talk out in the hall if you want. Viktor, I told Hermione we'd meet them by the front doors in thirty minutes. Luna, you're joining us, right?"

"Yes Harry."

"Harry, do you mind if I join you? I usually go with some other Ravenclaws but they are not going until later today," Helena asks.

"That's fine, you're always welcome to join us."

Harry gets up and walks out into the hall to talk to Ron. "Harry, I have to apologize, I've been a prat to you lately. My comment about you and Viktor was uncalled for. You know I sometimes say things out of anger, and that was one of them. I know Charlie is dating a guy and I have no problem with that. I also should have believed you about the Tournament. No sane person would willingly fight a dragon, I don't know what I was thinking. Do you think you could ever forgive me?"

Harry sighs. "Ron, you hurt my feelings when you didn't believe me about the Tournament. We'd been friends for three years, and suddenly my word wasn't good enough anymore. Your comment yesterday was also hurtful, not just for me but for many others as well. I will forgive you for both, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to trust you enough to be the friends we were before this year. You need to learn to stay quiet when angry, because even the things you say in anger can come back to bite you. I don't know if I can forgive you if you ever say something like that again."

Ron's shoulders sag a little, knowing that Harry's right and it will take time for Harry to ever trust him again. "I understand. I really am sorry and will try harder."

"Alright. I have to go get some things from my room before Hogsmeade, I'll see you around."

Harry runs up to his room to grab his money and a warm cloak. He's already wearing his dragon hide boots, and after casting warming charms on all his clothing he knows he'll be warm enough. He walks back to the Entrance Hall to see everyone already waiting for him. "Sorry guys, it took me a minute to find my cloak."

Hermione gives him an amused look. "It's pretty big, how did you lose it?"

"You'd have to see my room to get the answer to that. Let's go, I'm ready to buy out Zonko's and Honeydukes," Harry replies with an excited look on his face.

The others laugh at his excitement and with a smile they walk past Mr. Filch and down to Hogsmeade. The whole group is talking and laughing, and they all get along very well. Their first stop is Zonko's, and Harry gives a happy wave to Sirius when he notices him watching their group go into the store. He sees Sirius wink back before pointedly distracting Remus from seeing them go in.

Viktor looks around in amazement. "We have a store like this in Bulgaria but it is not allowed at Durmstrang. It is allowed at Hogwarts?"

"Not really, or at least most of it isn't. But what they don't know they can't confiscate, right?" Harry grins.

"They do not search your bags?"

Harry looks appalled. "No off course not, that would be invasion of privacy. If you get caught with any banned products you get in trouble, but the key is to not get caught. Most students have at least some of these products and the staff knows it. If you get anything, I can hide it in my room until you need it so you don't get caught."

"I think I will refrain from buying, but I will help you."

Harry smiles at him before turning back to all the displays. By the time the group leaves the store, Cedric looks at Harry in amusement. "You know, as Head Boy I really should confiscate all of that. I can't believe you bought four bags full of stuff."

"But I know you won't because as you can see, I'm not holding any bags right now so I don't know what you're talking about," Harry laughs. He has shrunken all his bags and put them in his pockets before leaving the store.

"Just don't use any of it on me."

"Deal. What's next, Honeydukes?"

This time even Viktor buys an assortment of things, and once again Harry has several bags to shrink and put in his pocket. They almost walk right into Remus and Sirius when walking out of Honeydukes. "Oh, Remus, this is for you," Harry says, handing him a bar of Honeydukes Finest Dark Chocolate. "I know how much you like it."

"Bribing your teachers to turn a blind eye to your purchases? It might work if you had something for me as well," Sirius says with a mischievous look.

Harry pulls out one of his bag, enlarges it, and pulls out a small bag of Toffee. "Here you go." He shrinks the bag and puts it back in his pocket.

"How much did you buy?" Sirius asks, taking the Toffees.

Harry just smiles and without answering quickly follows his friends who are walking towards the bookstore. He has no doubt this was Hermione's suggestion but he doesn't mind. He needs to start on his Christmas shopping anyway.

After the bookstore they decide they should head to lunch, and Luna and Helena both decide to head back to the castle. Hermione, Cedric, Harry and Viktor walk to the little Italian restaurant and are shown to a round booth towards the back.

"This looks really nice," Harry says.

"It does. Completely different from what we're used to around here," Cedric says with a nod.

"I don't know what half the things on this menu are. Anyone willing to help me?" Harry asks.

"I'll help. My parents love Italian food. What were you looking at?" Viktor says.

Soon they are all bend over their menus, trying to decide what to get. When the waitress comes around to take their drink order, she immediately starts stammering at seeing Viktor and Harry. Viktor and Harry share exasperated looks and Cedric asks for the manager.

"Is there a problem here?" the manager asks.

"It appears our waitress is a little starstruck to the point she couldn't take our drink orders. Would you mind getting us someone else?"

"I will personally wait on you to ensure you have a good experience," the manager says, knowing full well who they are and wanting to ensure they have a good experience which might mean free publicity.

By this point they have all decided what they want to eat as well and place their orders.

"I hate being treated like that," Harry says. "I know I should be used to it but I don't think I ever will."

"In Bulgaria people don't approach me as much. It has happened a lot more here," Viktor says. "I just ignore it."

"I didn't realize it was that bad. I'm so used to seeing you that I suppose you are just another student at Hogwarts to me," Cedric says.

"And that's how I want to be, just another student, just Harry. I understand that will never happen though. And now with me having four Lordships I will always be watched."

"It's the same way in the muggle world with the Royal Family," Hermione says. "Apparently Prince Alex is a squib, I read that somewhere. They've had Wizards in their history, but to most muggles they are true royalty. They get followed everywhere and Muggle tabloids are always writing about them."

"Prince Alex is a squib? I didn't know that. Lord Peterson told me I will be formally introduced to the Queen at some point. Apparently the fact that I also hold four Lordships in the Wizarding World has brought me to her attention. He received an official letter to confirm my status, so I'm assuming we'll get an invitation soon. He told me the Royal Family likes to stay on top of what's going on the Wizarding World, since we are all still British Citizens and therefore subject to the laws, whether they be muggle or magical. Isn't Prince Alex our age?"

Hermione nods. "He is. That would be really interesting if you got to meet the Queen. That is a real honor."

"I know. It makes me nervous just thinking about it. I do like that I will be invited because I'm a four-time Lord, not because I'm the Boy Who Lived."

Just then their food is brought out and Harry looks at his plate in excitement. He ended up going with lasagna, and it looks amazing. After taking a bite he closes his eyes. "This is amazing. Why don't we eat like this up at the school?"

"The house elves probably don't know how to make it," Cedric says with a grin.

They all fall silent as they enjoy their meals. For dessert Harry orders Tiramisu, and he decides it is quite possibly the best dessert he's ever had. "This might be better than treacle tart, and you all know how much I love treacle tart."

Everyone laughs, knowing Harry never passes up an opportunity to eat treacle tart. When the manager comes back with the check Harry snatches it before anyone else can. "It's on me today."

"Harry, no." Hermione says. Viktor and Cedric are glaring at him as well.

"If you want to pay me back, find the recipe for Lasagna and Tiramisu and give it to Dobby."

"Harry, I asked you out. Give me the check."

"No it's on me. I want to do this so let me," Harry says while paying the bill quickly.

Viktor opens his mouth to protest but Cedric and Hermione shake their head. "It's not worth it, he's as stubborn as a mule," Hermione says. "We usually find a way to get back at him later."

The group slowly starts walking back to the castle, where they split off towards their separate dorms with the promise to see each other at dinner. Harry walks to his room, and almost jumps when he sees Severus sitting on his bed. "Empty your pockets."

"Excuse me?"

"I have a feeling you bought half of Zonko's. I'm not sure it's a good idea to let you keep it all."

Harry grins. "I don't know what you're talking about. Sir."

"Hmm," Severus says, his eyes narrowing. "You use any of those pranks on me and you will be scrubbing cauldrons for a very long time."

"I'm not suicidal you know."

"That's good to know."

"Harry, why did I just get stopped by a frustrated Viktor who told me to teach you proper dating protocol?" Sirius says, walking in Harry's room.

Harry laughs. "I paid for lunch."

"Ahh and he invited you to lunch."

"Pretty much. Hermione and Cedric weren't too happy either."

"You do realize that when he asked you out to lunch he intended to pay, right?"

Harry just shrugs. "He'll just have to be faster next time. Now I need you both to leave before my chocolate melts in my pocket."

Harry resizes his purchases and hides it all in various places in his room. When he walks into the living room he is stopped by Remus. "Clean your room please."

"It's not that bad."

Remus simply raises his eyebrow and points at Harry's room. Harry turns around, waves his wand and his clothes fly to the laundry basket. With the next wave of his wand all his books and papers organize themselves. He turns back to Remus with a cheeky grin before continuing into the living room. "That wasn't so hard now was it? Try keeping it somewhat organized if you could," Remus says, shaking his head.

"My room was spotless compared to the dorms."

"I have no doubt that that's true. Did you enjoy Hogsmeade?"

"I did. Going with a group is fun. You should try that new Italian restaurant sometime, it's really nice. I need to get Dobby to make some of those things."

"Dobby would do anything for you, I doubt cooking Italian will pose a problem."

"Very true. I really should get started on my homework but it's nice to just sit here by the fire."

Just then said fire flares to life and they see Lord Peterson's head appear. "Ahh Harry I was hoping you'd be back from Hogsmeade. I just received a call and it appears there is a formal dinner at the Palace tonight. It had originally been cancelled, but now it's back on and you are invited. They said you are welcome to bring your guardians and Viktor, as they are aware of the courtship. Are you available?"

Harry just stares at the flames so Severus answers. "We would be delighted. Full formal?"

"Yes. I will escort you there. I will floo to your quarters at five thirty, that will give us half an hour to get there. I will ensure a formal notice is sent to the headmaster to let him know of your invitation so he can't refuse. They informed of an apparition point right by the security entrance."

Lord Peterson disappears through the floo and the noise gets Harry's attention back on what's going on. "Dinner at the Palace?"

"Yes. Full formal. You want to go warm Viktor? Have him meet in the Entrance Hall at five thirty. That gives you about two hours to get ready."

Harry nods before running out. "Is it normal for such short notice?"

"No, and I always understood they didn't do much on Saturday nights unless it was a formal event. I'm curious though, so we'll just have to wait and see. I'm assuming everyone has formal dress robes?"

They all nod and Sirius goes to Harry's room to pick his out for him.

Harry has made it to the grounds and when he gets to where the ship is docked he sends a Patronus to Viktor.

"I'm still not too happy with you."

"Just be faster next time. I came to tell you I, and therefore by extension you, have been invited to a full formal dinner at the Palace. Wear formal dress robes, I'm assuming you have some?"

"Yes, I brought them for the Yule Ball. What time?"

"Be in the Entrance Hall at five thirty. I'm sorry it's so last minute."

"It's alright. Dinner at the Palace, that is impressive and completely makes up for lunch."

Harry grins. "Good! I have to get going, I'm sure Sirius is already going through my wardrobe."

Harry ends up dresses in his dark green dress robes with Potter crest under robes. He is wearing black trousers, a dark green shirt and black tie. He puts on Gryffindor cufflinks and a Black tie pin. His black dress shoes are put on right as Lord Peterson steps through the floo. "Ahh Harry, you clean up very well."

"Thank you sir. I think we all look very nice."

They all walk to the Entrance Hall where Viktor is waiting on them in black dress robes with a white shirt. Severus, unsurprisingly, is wearing all black, while Sirius is wearing a dark red shade. Remus is wearing dark blue, and Lord Peterson is in black with a white shirt as well.

"You look nice Viktor."

"Thank you, so do you. I'm assuming we are apparating?"

"Yes, I will side-along Harry," Sirius says.

They make their way to the gates and quickly apparate to the Palace. Harry looks amazed as soon as he opens his eyes. "I've never seen it before. It's so big."

"Yes it is. Now remember your manners."

"I will, don't worry. A small bow and 'Your Majesty' correct?"

"Correct."

They all make it through security and are shown into what looks to be a large parlor. They are instructed to stand in a line, with Harry first, right next to Viktor, and then Severus as he is also a Lord. When the Queen enters, Harry smiles. He bows slightly and greets her appropriately.

"Young man you look magnificent in those robes. My grandson would probably like those. He should be in shortly. I'm delighted to finally meet the young man your news speaks of so often."

"I'm delighted to meet you as well Your Majesty. I had never seen the Palace before, let alone been inside."

"Well, I will make sure my grandson shows you around before dinner. And is this the young man you are courting?"

"Yes Your Majesty. This is Viktor Krum."

"How wonderful. Nice to meet you both and I'm sure we will talk some more later on."

Harry has already figured out they are the only ones invited. He is lost in thought when he feels a hand on his arm and notices Viktor is trying to get his attention. When he looks up he sees a boy his own age standing before him. "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't see you there."

"That's alright. I'm Prince Alex. You're Harry, right?"

"Yes I am. It's nice to meet you. I've been told you are a squib?"

"Yes. When I was a child I used to make strange things happen so they called one of your people and they did some spell on me and they said I had a little bit of magic but I was a squib. I was disappointed, it sounded like fun."

Harry smiles. "It is fun." He focuses his magic slightly on Alex, confused as to why he would do accidental magic when he's a squib as that's not normal and almost reels back in shock. "Not again," he groans.

Apparently he was slightly loud as everyone is now staring at him. Sirius, who had just finished greeting the Queen, comes over in concern. "Harry? What's wrong?"

"Remember what happened with Dudley?"

"Yes. Why were you saying 'not again'?"

Harry looks at Alex and back at Sirius. Sirius closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. "You're certain?"

Harry nods. "Should I do the spell that was done on me to check my core strength? I learned it a few weeks ago."

"With his permission."

"Alex, I think there might have been a mistake. See, I can sense magic and I sense magic on you. That's usually not the case with a squib. Would you mind if I cast a spell on you to check?"

Excited at the prospect of having magic, Alex nods his permission. Harry pulls out his wand and casts the spell, not surprised when an orange ball appears above Alex. "You have a magical core and it is average strength. You are a normal wizard. If you don't mind me asking, who checked you when you were younger?"

"I'm not sure, he had long blond hair and was really pale. Grandma, do you remember?"

"Lucius Malfoy I believe was his name. You mean to tell me he was wrong?"

Harry just nods.

"Prince Alex should be attending Hogwarts and learn about magic and how to control it. If he doesn't, he'll continue to do accidental magic," Severus says.

"Well how about that. You might have to go to Hogwarts instead of Eton Alex. Now why don't you three young men go explore the Palace while we enjoy a drink together?"

Alex shows them some of the Palace, it is far too large to see it all, and Harry and Viktor are suitably impressed. "So what is Hogwarts like?"

"It is amazing. Viktor actually attends a different school but this year there's a tournament at Hogwarts where a group of students from two other schools are at Hogwarts. Viktor is the Champion for his school. Hogwarts has about 400 students and it is located in a large castle. Everything about it is magical. There are four Houses in which you can be sorted, and each house has a Head of House. I used to be in Gryffindor, but then there's also Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. At the start of this year I was re-sorted because one of the Heads of House believed I had changed and might not belong in Gryffindor anymore, and I was placed in all four Houses so I have my own room that connects to all four. We take all the basic classes like Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, History of Magic, Defense Against the Dark Arts and Astronomy. Then there are electives you can take which are Care of Magical Creatures, Muggle Studies, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes and Divination. All first years also have a class called flying. Each House has a Quidditch team, which is a sport played on brooms. This year they cancelled Quidditch because of the Tournament. I'm on the Gryffindor Team as a Seeker. Viktor is actually an international Quidditch star."

"That all sounds amazing. I don't know how that would work though, since I'm pretty far behind."

"You would have extra lessons to catch you up on everything so that next year or the year after you can take classes with your year."

"I hope my father will allow me to attend. It has been decades since a member of the Royal Family was a wizard or witch. Imagine how we would be able to bridge the gap between the Muggle and Wizarding World."

"It would be amazing. Off course there is the Statute of Secrecy so we can't tell Muggles about magic, but if we ever needed to join forces the muggles could be told something different to explain, and if wizards were ever needed by your government we are really good at hiding our magic."

"Exactly. We should head back down, I'm sure it's almost time for dinner. Grandma is really nice but she doesn't like tardiness."

When they walk back downstairs they are immediately shown into the dining room, where they are the last ones to arrive. "Alexander, I have spoken to these gentlemen and your father. You will be joining them at Hogwarts tomorrow. As I understand the Headmaster has been notified."

"Thank you grandmother. Will I be sorted into one of the Houses?"

"Actually, you won't be. It is in the Hogwarts bylaws that any member of the Royal Family who attends Hogwarts will not be sorted into a House to allow them to become equally acquainted with all students. You will be sharing the room Harry is currently in, as he is a member of all Houses as well. You will have the room to yourself for a while, as Harry is currently living in Sirius' quarters as punishment."

Harry, flushing slightly at the mention of being punished in front of the Queen, looks at his plate and quickly takes a bite. "Don't be embarrassed. I'm here this weekend because I got in some trouble at school and grandma wanted to have a talk with me," Alex says softly to Harry.

Harry quickly notices that while Alex might be a Prince and his grandmother is the Queen, they are quite normal. Conversation is polite and respectful, and protocols are followed and there are servants, but Harry is finding it much easier than he had expected. When they get ready to leave, Harry pulls Alex aside.

"When you get there tomorrow, tell the Headmaster you want to meet Harry Potter. He will not be surprised and he will call me to his office so that I can show you around afterwards. He doesn't know I've met you tonight."

"I will do that, thank you."

When they get back to Hogwarts Harry falls down on the couch with a sigh. "That was interesting."

"I'm going to stop taking you places," Sirius says. "It's never a dull moment. I'm sure Lucius was sent there by the Minister of Magic himself so we'll have to be careful. But a potential ally within the Royal Family will be useful in the coming war."

"I'm going to bed. This is all giving me a headache," Harry says.

The next day Harry is exhausted. They had gotten back late, and he had had a hard time getting to sleep. He is sitting at the breakfast table, but he isn't eating anything. Finally Viktor grabs his plate and loads some eggs and bacon it. He gives Harry a pointed look until Harry recasts his detection charms and starts eating.

"Do you have plans today?" Cedric asks from across the table.

"I need to figure out my egg. Besides that Sundays are family days, not sure what we're doing yet."

"I would take a long hot bath," Cedric says.

Viktor nods. "Agreed. Maybe taking your egg with you will help you figure it out. It'll help you relax if nothing else, and you look like you need relaxing."

"Not a bad idea. I might just do that," Harry says. The fact that both Cedric and Viktor say it must be some kind of clue. He doesn't have much time to think about it because suddenly a nervous Second Year hands him a note from the headmaster.

"I'm wanted up in the office. I'll see you guys later," Harry says, grabbing a few rashers of bacon on his way out.

He is still munching on his bacon when he walks into the headmaster's office, suddenly realizing why he was called there and slightly embarrassed he is wearing sweatpants and a tshirt. "Oh, I'm sorry, I got a note you wanted to see me?"

"Yes Mr. Potter, this is Prince Alex. He will be joining us as a student. You will be sharing your room with him, and he requested you to show him around the school."

"I would be delighted. I have to apologize for my state of dress, I wasn't really thinking when I walked down to breakfast this morning."

"That is alright Harry, it is Sunday. It's alright to want to be comfortable. Shall we go? Someone has already taken all my things to our room."

They depart the headmaster's office and Harry starts pointing out various things. "Let's start with our room and we'll go from there."

As soon as they walk into their room, Harry notices it has doubled in size. "Wow. The room has doubled in size. It's easy to tell which side is mine, as it has nothing in it. Everything was moved to my room in Sirius' quarters. Hopefully I'll be able to move back here soon," Harry says. He then starts explaining the magical door.

Two hours later Harry finishes the tour, and they run into Severus in the dungeons. "Lord Prince, it is good to see you."

"Prince Alex. I wasn't expecting you so early, did you not have to get your school supplies?"

"We went early this morning so that I would have all day to get settled in."

"That was probably a good idea. I believe Professor Flitwick is your Head of House?"

"Yes sir. I will be meeting with him after lunch to go over my schedule."

"Excellent. I look forward to having you in my class. Harry, your guardians have requested your presence in their rooms. They said you can bring Prince Alex if you would like."

"Thanks Severus."

Alex and Harry make their way to the teacher's wing, and quickly walk through to Sirius' rooms. Harry quickly shows Alex the rooms before sitting down on the couch. "They'll be here soon. Would you like tea?"

"That would be great."

"Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"Could you get a tea tray and an assortment of biscuits? Thank you."

When Dobby is gone Alex looks shocked. "What was that?"

"Oh that's a House Elf. They basically run the school. Cooking, cleaning, laundry. Dobby is my personal elf. He is bonded to me, not the school."

Seconds later a tea tray pops onto the coffee table and Alex is once again awed. "That is brilliant."

"I had the same reaction the first time. In the Great Hall food will appear on the tables the same way."

Just then Sirius and Remus walk in and smile at them, before Remus pulls Harry off the couch. "Get properly dressed, that is no way to walk around."

Harry quickly walks into his room, changes into jeans and a jumper and walks back out. "Does this meet with your satisfaction?"

"Much better. Sweatpants should not be worn except around the house or while working out."

"If you say so. What did you need me for? I was going to show Alex how to fly."

"It's snowing, flying will have to wait. Filius actually asked us to ask you up here, he wanted to talk to you."

"We can fly in the snow. So we're waiting for him?"

"Yes we are and no you won't. You could get sick doing that and we don't need that."

"Hmm we'll see. There's always warming charms."

"Hmm last I checked I was still your guardian. Ahh Filius, we were just waiting on you."

"Good morning Sirius. Harry, Alex, good to see you both. I'll make this quick. I have here your syllabus for your advanced Charms. That way you have an idea what to expect. I'd like you to go over it sometime today and let me know if there's anything else you would like added or anything you already know."

"Sure, I can do that."

"Very well. Alex, if you are free now we can go over your schedule in my office?"

"Yes sir, that would be fine."

"I'm going to go take a long bath and I'm taking the egg with me. I'll see if I can come up with anything while relaxing."

Harry gets up, grabs the egg which had been sitting on the coffee table, and heads into the bathroom. Sirius looks confused. "Why is he taking a bath with that egg? Seems like an odd thing to do."

"It is an odd thing to do. I'm sure he has his reasons," Remus says with a slight shrug. "Do you think we should tell him to move back to his dorm now that he is sharing a room?"

"It's up to Harry. He knows he can move back anytime he wants. We'll leave it up to him but if he doesn't bring it up by Christmas holidays we'll ask him."

An: Up next, Harry figures out the egg and starts planning the next task with his guardians. The school's reaction to Alex, Alex' reaction to the school, the end of term and the Yule ball.


	37. Chapter 37

AN: Lots of things happening in this chapter. Hope you enjoy! This will be the last chapter for a few weeks as I'm going on vacation and won't have access to internet (I know, scandalous) except for my phone. My goal is to update all my stories before leaving.

Chapter 37

Harry is relaxing back in the tub, thinking about everything that's been happening. He's covered in bubbles and the water is hot but not scalding. It's been a long time since he's been able to relax like this, and he knows if he stays in too long someone will come looking to make sure he's alright.

He decides to open the egg and see what it says. Might as well use the relaxing atmosphere to think in silence. As soon as he opens it there is a loud piercing wailing sound. He drops the egg in the tub and the whaling immediately stops, but not before Sirius, Remus and Severus all run into the bathroom with wands drawn.

"What happened?" Sirius asks, not seeing anything strange in the bathroom.

"I opened the egg. Apparently that's the sound it makes. But it stopped when I dropped it in the tub so there might be something there," Harry says, glad he put so many bubbles in the tub.

"Oh. Well, I suppose we'll leave you be then. That sounded awful."

Harry nods and the three adults leave the bathroom. Harry picks his egg up out of the tub and looks at it. He wonders why it stopped when he dropped it in the water. Going on a hunch he puts the egg back under water and sticks his head in.

_Come seek us where our voices sound_

_We cannot sing above the ground_

_And while you're searching ponder this_

_We've taken what you'll sorely miss_

_An hour long you'll have to look_

_And to recover what we took_

_But past an hour the prospect's black_

_Too late, it's gone, it won't come back_

Harry finishes listening to the song and comes back up to catch his breath. "Sirius!" he yells loudly.

"Yes pup?" Sirius says, sticking his head in.

"Get a quill and parchment, I need you to write this down."

Sirius summons the needed items, and sticking his head in and out Harry dictates to Sirius what to write. When he is done, he puts the egg outside the tub. "That's the clue. I'm going to finish this bath real quick and then I'll be out so we can figure out what the bloody hell it means."

"Language Harry. And I'll have Severus and Remus read it."

When Harry gets to the living room they are already pondering the clue. "Figure it out yet?"

"No, but we think it's something in the Black Lake since you were able to hear it under water and it's something that can't live above the ground," Severus says.

Harry nods. "I thought that too. What lives in the Black Lake?"

"A lot of things, none of them pleasant. There's a reason you're not allowed to swim in it. What did it sound like?" Remus replies.

"It was a beautiful song, sung in high almost female sounding voices."

"Merpeople maybe?" Remus asks.

"Whatever it is, Harry will need to be able to fight off just about anything in that lake. So basically they're going to take something you can't live without and you have an hour to find it and bring it back. Should we take the warning at the end seriously?" Sirius says.

"Normally I'd say no, but if the Dark Lord or Dumbledore have anything to do with this, it's a possibility we can't ignore."

"Alright, so I need to learn how to swim and learn how to cast wordless spells to fight off anything in the lake. Oh, and I need to find out how to stay underwater for an hour without dying. Simple enough," Harry says sarcastically.

"The breathing under water is easy. Gillyweed will allow you grow gills and you'll be able to breath just like a fish would. I have some in my stores," Severus says.

"Well that's one problem solved. We will teach you how to swim and we will teach you any spell we can think off. The swimming we can do over the holidays, we can conjure a pool at Black Manor. We will also start the spells then. I think we should all come up with a list. Harry, you need to focus on your studies and do well on your end of term exams so I don't want you doing much for the second task. Leave it up to us to make the list and ensure you learn them all," Sirius says with a reassuring smile.

"I'm glad I have you guys. Oh, I'm thinking of moving back to the dorms. I love staying here but I think Alex would do better if he had a roommate and wasn't by himself, at least until he's made friends. I know I enjoyed having roommates when I first got here, it made the place seem less lonely."

"If you want to move back, you can," Sirius says. "But keep in mind that if we notice you not doing as well on your studies we will move you back. The privacy of these quarters have helped your studies and you can't deny that."

"I know. But I can always study in my room. Do you mind if I head back now?"

"That's fine, just have Dobby move your things," Sirius says. "We'll cancel lessons for the afternoon if you promise to do school work and not the second task."

When Harry walks into his room, Alex is there looking slightly overwhelmed. "Hi Alex. You look lost."

"Professor Flitwick just went over my schedule. It's a lot of individual instruction. I'm a little overwhelmed."

"It won't be as bed when you start, I promise. They just want to catch you up as fast as possible so you can take classes with the rest of us next year, or at least take your OWLs with us."

"That's what Professor Flitwick said."

Dobby pops in with Harry's belongings and with a snap of his fingers Harry's things are back where they belong. "Will Master Harry sir be needing anything else?"

"No thank you Dobby."

"What in the world was that?"

Harry grins. "That's Dobby. He's my house elf. House elves do everything around Hogwarts, including cleaning laundry and cooking. Some people have personal house elves who are bonded to them. Dobby is bonded to me and only takes orders from me. As a student you can't call a house elf to do anything for you, only professors can. But if you ever need help or need anything, feel free to call Dobby and ask for it. If he can't do it, he'll look really uncomfortable so if he does that, tell him to ask me first."

"Alright. Thank you. Is it time for lunch?"

"I think it's actually towards the end of lunch so we should hurry."

They get to the Great Hall just in time to load up their plates before the food disappears. Harry casts detection charms on his and Alex's plates and starts eating. "Those are detection charms, they detect poison. They are necessary for me and won't hurt for you. I can cast them for you, or Viktor can when he's here. You won't learn them for another while. I think your presence was announced earlier at lunch because a lot of people are staring."

Viktor walks over from another table and sits down. "You were announced at the beginning of lunch. A lot of people want to meet you, but be careful of who wants to be your friend just because of who you are. Harry and I are used to that and can help you figure it out if needed, but I'm sure you get it a lot in the muggle world."

"I do, but I could use your help. I don't like being by myself, so even your company would help."

"We'll do what we can," Harry smiles.

"Harry, you almost missed lunch. I would not have been happy if I had to bring another plate of food to you. You need to eat, especially if you want to be as strong as possible for the Tournament," Viktor gently admonishes.

Harry looks down at his plate, knowing that Viktor is just scolding him because he cares. "I know. I lost track of time. I was figuring out the next task and then I was moving back into my room."

"It's alright, I just don't like to see you missing meals. I have to get to the ship, Karkarof scheduled mandatory homework time for this afternoon. I will see you both at dinner."

"Will you be alright?" Harry asks.

"Yes, don't worry. There is nothing I can't deal with. Be careful."

"Why do you look so worried?" Alex asks.

"Durmstrang uses corporal punishment and Karkarof, the headmaster, doesn't like that he's courting me. I'm worried he will get punished again."

Alex is looking at him with wide eyes. "There has to be some law against that!"

"There is in Wizarding Britain, but the ship is considered Bulgaria land so British law doesn't apply."

"I will contact our solicitor and see if there isn't something we can do. That seems preposterous."

"Does your solicitor know about magic?"

"Yes. He is actually a wizard. All Royal solicitors have to be either Muggleborn or Half Blood wizards with legal knowledge of both worlds. It's to ensure if there is a wizard in the Royal family we don't suddenly have to find someone new."

"That makes sense. If you could do that, I'd appreciate it. I will also write Lord Peterson, he's my solicitor."

Alex chuckles. "He's mine too. If you write him, I will not say anything unless Royal influence is needed, how about that?"

Harry laughs. "So you already knew him before that dinner?"

"Yes, but due to confidentiality neither of us could say anything. He's been excellent."

"Yes he has been. I'll write him this afternoon. My lessons got cancelled so I'm going back to our room to get some studying done for this coming week. Only a week and then it's exam time and I have way too much left to do. I don't want to disappoint anyone by doing poorly."

"I'm sure as long as you do your best, nobody will care," Alex says while getting up. "It's all you can do after all."

"I know. I'm ready for the holidays. We have to stay here for the Yule Ball which is that Saturday the holidays start, but we are leaving the castle after that and going back to Black Manor for the remainder. I'm assuming you're going home?"

Alex nods. "Professor Flitwick wants me to learn all the basics this week and next, and then he'll give me assignments to do while on holiday. He said I will have a lot and will be busy, but there will be enough free time for obligations and family time."

Harry nods. "That makes sense. Do you have homework for tomorrow?"

"Not really, but I got the lesson outlines and I want to read about what I'll be learning to get a head start."

"That's a good idea. I would have done a lot better my first few years if I had read before classes. Actually, I would have done better if I had read at all, before or after classes."

Alex grins. "I'm not the most studious, but this all sounds fascinating. The only thing I ever got in trouble for at school was not paying attention or not doing all the homework. I'm hoping if all this stays this interesting I won't have that problem here."

They have reached their rooms and Harry sits down at his desk. "If you need any help or have questions, just let me know."

Harry quickly writes a letter to Lord Peterson and sends it off with Hedwig before getting to work. He knows he'll do well on his exams, but he wants to get O's on everything to impress his guardians. They've been working for about two hours when Dobby pops in with biscuits and tea.

"Master Harry sir and Master Alex sir been studying. Dobby brings biscuits and tea," Dobby says while placing both on top of a small table he conjures.

Harry looks up in surprise. "Thank you Dobby, I could really use both right about now. Also, if Alex needs anything at anytime, help him, alright? He is my friend."

"Yes Master Harry sir," Dobby says in excitement, glad to have someone else to look out for and happy his master is happy he brought tea without being asked.

When Dobby leaves Alex laughs. "Are all elves so excitable?"

Harry laughs too. "No, Dobby is special. But he is more loyal to me than anyone I know. My stories of my first years at Hogwarts are best saved for when we have more time, but in Second Year Lucius Malfoy tried to send a killing curse at me and Dobby blasted him off his feet instead. It was amazing."

"Malfoy? There's a blonde our age here by that name."

"Yes, Draco Malfoy. He's Lucius' son. You met him?"

Alex nods. "He came in while I was with Professor Flitwick. I got the impression his question was faked just so he could see me."

"I don't want to tell you who to be friends with, but he is not someone to trust. Be careful around him or his friends please."

"I got that impression too, but I'm glad you told me."

The both get back to work, with Alex occasionally asking a question. When it's time for dinner Dobby pops in. "Master Harry Sir, Master Viktor asks Dobby to let Master Harry know it is time for dinner."

Harry chuckles. "Thank you Dobby."

Alex and Harry share an amused look and head down to dinner. They sit down at the table Viktor is already seated at. "I see your little elf friend got the message to you?"

"Yes he did. We were both caught up in homework. Pretty smart to tell him, he's about as fanatical about me eating as you and my guardians are."

"Good. Would you like to go for a walk after dinner?"

"I can't, I have to finish an essay I've been working on. I can do that in the all-house common room though and you can join me there?"

"I'll do that. How do you like magic Alex?"

"I love it so far. It seems hard but I know I'll learn it eventually. I don't like getting stared at but then again, I'm also used to that. I love watching all the magical things and learning new things about this world. I read the first chapters in all my textbooks earlier so now I have a better understanding what all can be done and follow conversations a little bit better."

"You will learn it, don't worry. You look very relaxed for someone who has just started at a new school."

"I'm used to uncomfortable situations through official gatherings, but Harry has been a big help. He has been a huge help in getting me settled in and making me feel welcome. I'm glad we're sharing a room," Alex says with a smile to Harry.

"You moved back to the dorms?" Viktor asks Harry.

Harry nods. "Yeah they let me move back."

"Maybe I should come visit you there."

Harry laughs. "They charmed the door so only Alex and I can get in. I'm not sure what would happen if a student tried, but I'm sure it would alert someone and would likely result in a long lecture at minimum."

Viktor and Alex both chuckle. "Let's go get our books and meet in the common room. I really need to get started on it."

When they get to the all house common room there are students gathered everywhere, and Harry and Alex join Helena at a table. "Hi Harry. Hi Alex, I'm Helena. I'm in Ravenclaw."

"Nice to meet you," Alex says while sitting down.

Before starting his essay Harry writes a letter to Charlie. He had promised to write after the First Task and it just hadn't happened yet.

** Hi Charlie,

I know I said I'd write but I've been swamped with everything around here. After the First Task I was happy to be done and to be alive but it was immediately back to real life. I'm sure you've read it in the papers by now but I've started courting Viktor Krum. I think it's strange to call it courting since we are really just dating, but I suppose four time Lord has something to do with that. He has been very caring, and you'll be happy to know he makes sure I show up to meals! He even sent Dobby to let me know it was dinner time earlier.

Ron apologized for how he's been acting and for some of the things he's said. I accepted his apology but I don't know if we'll ever be the friends we were. I know you talked to him after the First Task, and whatever you said to him got through to him at least a little bit so thank you.

Did you hear about the Basilisk? We harvested it and Severus sold it. Six million galleons! It is crazy to me what some potions ingredients are worth. I don't intend on keeping the money, I already have plans for it to help others but I'll explain those at a later date.

Did you hear Professor Snape is no longer Head of Slytherin? He claimed his Lordship and is now Lord Prince, and as such he doesn't have time for it anymore. The Slytherins all seem upset but they'll get used to it.

The latest news might be in the Prophet right before you get this letter. The Royal Prince Alex was discovered as a Wizard and is now attending Hogwarts. I'm sharing my room with him and he is incredibly nice. He's my age and we get along great. It has to be hard to suddenly go to a new school in the middle of the year, in a world you don't know and having to catch up on everything. I've been helping him as much as I can. Dudley settled in great and I hardly even see him anymore as he's always with friends. I'm sure if Dudley can fit in, so can Alex.

We figured out the clue for the Second Task. It's something in the Black Lake that I have to find and rescue within an hour. I never learned how to swim and now I have to stay underwater for an hour, which is pretty scary.

Well that's pretty much all I have to share. How is life in Romania? How is that dragon handler you were seeing?"

Harry **

Harry quickly sends his letter off with Hedwig before opening his book. He's wondering where Viktor is, but that question is answered when Viktor walks into the room. When he sits down it's clear he's uncomfortable. "What happened?" Harry glares.

"Nothing for you to worry about."

"Viktor, I worry when it's clear you can barely sit down. Let's go."

"Harry, don't do anything rash."

"I'm not going to but I can at least help you. Alex, will you be alright here for a bit?"

"Yes, I'll watch your books."

"I'll send them back to my room just in case I don't get back here before it closes. I'll see you in a bit. If you need help or anything else, call Dobby."

Harry grabs Viktor by the arm and guides him out of the room and to the teacher's wing. He walks into Sirius' quarters, motioning for Sirius who's in the common area to follow him. Sirius and Remus follow and soon Severus comes in through his room.

"What's going on Harry?"

"I'd like to know that as well. Viktor showed up in the all-house common room after dinner and he can barely sit down."

Severus immediately walks over to Viktor. "What did he use?" he says softly.

"It's no big deal, really."

"Viktor, I'm not trying to embarrass you. I need to know what potion or salve to get."

Viktor sighs. "Belt," he says softly.

Severus nods and disappears before reappearing with a salve. "Harry, can we use your room?"

"Off course," Harry says before sitting down with a worried look.

Severus takes Viktor into Harry's room. "I know this is embarrassing but I need you to expose all areas that were hit and lay down on the bed so I can apply this."

Viktor, not happy about it but wanting to get rid of the pain all the same quickly obeys. Severus has to hold back a gasp at seeing the welts on Viktor's backside and upper thighs. He quickly starts spreading the salve and can hear Viktor's sigh of relief. "I'll need to do this again in a couple hours. Here is a pain relief potion for now."

"Thank you sir, you didn't have to do that."

"I did. That is abuse Viktor. Harry's solicitor is coming over tonight because Harry wrote him about your situation. He wanted to know if legally there is anything you can do. He thinks he may have found a solution. You should stay here for that, and that way I can apply the salve later."

"He shouldn't have."

"No, but he's Harry and he did. He would do it for anyone. Just be grateful and accept it, even if nothing can be changed."

"I'll try. We should go back out there and reassure Harry that I'm fine."

When they walk back out Harry is pacing in the living room. Severus grabs him by the arm and pulls him over to the couch and sits him down before sitting down next to him. "Calm down Harry. I healed him."

"I'm glad. Lord Peterson got here a few minutes ago and is now in the study with Sirius. They put up silencing charms so I don't know what they're talking about."

"If they want us to know they'll tell us. Viktor, I must ask you to keep silent about seeing me here. We don't want it known that we are friendly."

"I wasn't going to say anything to anyone and I'm skilled in Occlumency. I understand you are closer to one another than just friendly if you can calm Harry down like that, and I saw how you helped him when he lost his temper in the Great Hall."

Harry smiles and leans into Severus' side, who puts his arm around Harry's shoulders. "I'm one of Harry's guardians."

"That explains why he looked so terrified when you caught him in the Forest. Most students wouldn't look like that if a regular professor caught them."

Severus chuckles. "He knew what was going to happen. Why don't we call for some tea while we wait for them?'

Just as Dobby delivers the tea Sirius, Remus and Lord Peterson come out of the study. "Ahh I see you are all here now. Mr. Krum, how are you doing?" Lord Peterson asks.

"I've been better sir. I heard you might have some news for me?"

"I do. I was actually talk to Sirius and Remus about something else while we waited for you to be healed. As a Champion in the Tournament you are competing for your school. However, because they didn't want a student to simply drop out to get out of the Tournament when it got too hard, the Champion would remain a Champion until the end of the Tournament even if they were no longer a student. That being said, if you choose to transfer to Hogwarts you will be sorted into a House here and be a Hogwarts student, with the exception of you competing for Durmstrang. Because you will not be a Durmstrang student, you will not be allowed on the ship and Karkarof will not be your headmaster. In fact, Karkarof will be asked to return to Durmstrang with the remaining students because no Durmstrang student will be competing. Should you win, the win will be counted as a Durmstrang win but that is only affiliation you'll have."

"Wouldn't that cause a huge scandal?"

"For the school maybe but I can help you with a press release so we can spin it to your advantage before the story gets leaked."

"What do I need to do to transfer?"

"You simply request the transfer with Professor Dumbledore. Explain that you have fallen in love with Hogwarts and would rather be a student here. Stroke his ego a little bit and he'll have the transfer done before anyone even realizes what's going on."

"Harry, what do you think?" Viktor asks.

"It's up to you Viktor. I want you safe and I don't think you are. Yes, you might think a whipping isn't a big deal but they have gotten worse. What if he permanently injures or kills you?"

"I will go speak to the headmaster now. I'm assuming all my belongings will be removed from the ship?"

"Yes, the headmaster will have Aurors do so without warning Karkarof first."

"Very well. I will go do that and I'll let you know when I find out more. I'm assuming he'll sort me right in his office?"

"He'll have to so you'll know where to sleep. Let us know through Dobby where that is and Harry can come find you there."

When Viktor is out of the room Harry sighs in relief. "I'm glad he'll be away from that man."

"And it will be good to have him leave Hogwarts too. I don't trust him."

"So what did you guys discuss in the study?"

Sirius smiles. "Nothing that concerns you Harry. How are you coming with your studying?"

"Pretty good. I've finished most of my homework for this week so I can start revising for the exams. At some point someone needs to give me dance lessons, apparently Champions have to open the ball with a dance?"

Remus laughs. "Yes, as the Yule Ball is a dance, you will have to dance. I'm assuming you are going with Viktor. Sirius is a decent dancer, so I'm sure he can give both of you dance lessons sometime this week or next."

"Perfect. So what day are we leaving for Austria?"

"The day after Boxing day. We will return January 2nd which will give us another week before we have to be back at Hogwarts. With Severus being Lord Prince it will be easy for all of us to leave without questions asked."

"Perfect. I'm ready for vacation."

"As long as you study first. I would hate to have to cancel the trip because someone failed a class," Severus says.

"You wouldn't"

"No, I wouldn't. But we still expect you to do your best. Why don't you head back to the common room or your room? Send Dobby to notify me of where Viktor is sorted so I can ensure he gets the cream applied before bed."

Harry finds Alex sitting by himself in the all house common room. "Nobody joined you?"

"A few did but they have all left. Is everything alright?'

"It will be. Why don't we head back to our rooms and I'll explain."

When Harry gets done explaining Alex shakes his head. "I'm glad Lord Peterson was able to provide a solution. What House do you think he'll be sorted into?"

"I have no idea. I could see him being either Ravenclaw or Slytherin. I hope it's not Slytherin because with Karkarof being a Dark Arts supporter I don't know how safe he'll be since most Slytherins would never understand why he'd leave or why he'd date me."

"If he wouldn't be safe, would he still have to live there?"

Harry shrugs his shoulders. "As far as I know he would, but I have no idea. It's actually possible to talk to hat out of where it wants to place you if you try hard enough, people just don't realize that and we don't want that to be common knowledge. But if you are suited for two different Houses it will take what you want into consideration."

"Well hopefully we'll find out something soon."

"I don't know how long it'll take. They'll have to get Aurors to get his things from the ship, and then his new Head of House will have to make an announcement in their House. Oh, hi Dobby," Harry says as Dobby pops in.

"Dobby being listening to Dumbles. Master Krum be sorted into Ravenclaw."

"Thank you Dobby. Could you go tell Sirius, Remus and Severus?"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

"Want to go invade the Ravenclaw common room and wait for him?"

Alex nods and they head to the common room. They play a few games with some other students before the door swings open and Viktor walks in with Professor Flitwick.

"Attention students. As of this evening Mr. Krum is no longer a Durmstrang student! He will be joining the sixth year students in Ravenclaw as he has just been sorted. He will still compete for Durmstrang as there is no way around the magical bond of the Tournament, but he is officially a Hogwarts student. Please make him feel welcome and make Ravenclaw proud."

All students stare at Viktor before excited whispers break out. Viktor sees Harry and Alex and walks towards them. "So I'm a Ravenclaw. Just so you know, Karkarof and the other Durmstrang students have already departed. Lord Peterson also already sent off the press release. Thank you Harry."

"You're welcome and I'm glad you're here. You should probably find out where your dorm is and get settled in. We'll be down here when you get done."

Viktor gives Harry a quick hug, which surprises him, before heading up the stairs with one of the prefects. "What's going on Harry?" Helena asks.

"You'll read it in the Prophet tomorrow. Let's just say corporal punishment is allowed at Durmstrang and Karkarof wasn't happy about us courting."

A shocked gasp ripples through the common room but everyone is smart enough to know not to ask questions and just wait for the morning paper.

The next morning the Daily Prophet arrives and Harry opens it already knowing the front page news.

SCANDAL AT THE TOURNAMENT!

By: Rita Skeeter

Here at the Daily Prophet we received an interesting news release late last night. It appears that not is as it seems at Durmstrang School. The school's Champion, Viktor Krum, has been courting the Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter, as we all know. According to the news release, Headmaster Karkarof was not pleased with this development and disciplined Mr. Krum for it. Now many of you will think, what is a few detentions? Well readers, Durmstrang allows Corporal Punishment and because the Durmstrang ship was considered Bulgarian soil, it was used on Mr. Krum. The exact details of this punishment was not revealed, but our source within Hogwarts saw Mr. Krum sitting painfully several times over the past few years and watched Harry Potter lead Mr. Krum towards the teacher's wing, and presumably his guardians' quarters, just before this new development last night. Mr. Krum requested to transfer to Hogwarts, and Headmaster Dumbledore granted the request. Mr. Krum was sorted into Ravenclaw, and a pair of Aurors was dispatched to retrieve Mr. Krum's belongings from the ship.

According to sources within the Ministry the Royal Family heard of this development and interfered and said that while the ship may be Bulgarian soil, the waters it was using was British and Britain has strict laws against child abuse. When Headmaster Karkarof was made aware of this, he promptly boarded the ship along with all the other Durmstrang students and left Britain to avoid prosecution.

What will this mean for the Tournament? Headmaster Dumbledore was able to answer that for us. Due to Mr. Krum participating under a magically binding contract, he will continue participating as a Champion. Should he win, that win will be logged as a Durmstrang win. Besides that, Hogwarts now appears to have three Champions.

"Well, she didn't say anything negative about us so I'd say it's a good article," Harry comments while glancing at Viktor's for a reaction.

"It is. I don't like that it's in the papers, but I'm glad I don't have to worry about getting a whipping anymore."

"And now that they've lost their star student, I'm sure other parents will complain and they might change that rule at Durmstrang. I can't imagine Karkarof getting a warm welcome there. I need to get to class, do you need help finding your classroom?" Harry asks.

"I think I know where it is, but I'm not sure."

"Alright, let's go then."

That evening after classes Harry is in his room studying when Hedwig flies in with a letter. "Thank you Hedwig. You made it back fast!" He opens the letter with a smile and starts reading.

** Hi Harry,

I assumed you were busy and so was I. It took us a long time to get back to Romania with the dragons and to get them calmed down again. While I love working with dragons, I wish I was back in England. I loved being near family again. One day I might be able to get a job nearby so I won't be as far away. Seeing you in that Task made me realize how precious life is, and also how much I'm missing out on.

I heard about you and Viktor and I'm happy for you. I saw you together some while there and he seems like a great guy. Off course he'll have to pass my approval once I see him again, but I also don't doubt Fred and George have already done that. I'm glad Ron is behaving better. I threatened him with a visit if I found out he was still being a prat.

I heard about the basilisk and heard how much it sold for. That is amazing! I'm glad you were able to do that, it's better than it lying forgotten in that Chamber. I'm sure Professor Snape is over the moon with the ingredients.

I'm glad you figured out the next task. Please let me know if there is anything I can help you with. I'm going to try to be back for it, but I'm not making promises.

Dad wrote me about Severus being Lord Prince. I'm happy he finally took up the Lordship, and while the Slytherins will surely feel his loss I don't doubt that it's better. He now has more freedom which I'm sure he enjoys.

I had not seen the news about Prince Alex yet. That is crazy how you keep finding these people Harry. Stop doing that! I don't doubt he's a great guy and he couldn't have found a better person to introduce him to Hogwarts and the Wizarding World.

Jake and I are no longer together. The stress of the trip to Britain got to him and he ended up cheating on me. He's now walking around with two black eyes. I got into trouble for punching him twice so they put me on night shift for the next week. I think if I had only punched him once I would have gotten away with a mere lecture. It's still worth it.

I have to get going, it is almost time for my next shift. Keep me up to date on what's going on over there, and hopefully see you in a few months.

Charlie **

Before Harry realizes the last week of classes is over and it's exam week. He has exams Monday through Thursday, and then Friday is a day off with Saturday being the Yule Ball. He will have his dance lesson on Friday as he's been too busy the past week. When Harry wakes up on Monday, Alex looks at him in concern.

"You look terrible. Did you not sleep?"

"I did but I went to bed late. I have my Ancient Runes exam today and I feel it's the one I'm least prepared for."

"Harry, you've been doing nothing but studying. You'll be fine. I'll be in the all house common room working on assignments while you all take exams. Come find me when you're done."

Harry nods and heads down to breakfast, where Viktor forces him to eat something. "You can't focus on your exam if you are hungry. You don't have to eat much, just a little will be fine until lunch."

When Viktor sees Harry at lunch he looks slightly worried. "Harry, how did your exam go?"

"I think it went alright. I have no idea. I have Potions after lunch."

"Alright. After that you are going to take a nap. You look exhausted and I know you are plenty prepared for Charms and DADA tomorrow."

"Alright. I do feel tired." Harry says, fully intending on finding somewhere quiet after Potions. The end of the week can't come fast enough for him.

When Thursday afternoon comes around and Harry gets to lunch he gets a big hug from Hermione. "We're done!" she says happily.

"Yes we are. Now if you don't mind, I'm going to eat something and then crash somewhere."

Harry absentmindedly notices many students looking as tired as he feels and it's not long before he makes his way to the teacher's wing. He walks to his room and falls asleep within minutes. When it's time for dinner Sirius finds him sprawled facedown on his bed, still fully dressed and with shoes on. He quickly spells him into pajamas and tucks him in, before spelling a nutrient potion into his stomach. He knows what Harry needs is sleep, not food.

It is almost lunch time on Friday when Harry finally wakes up. He walks into the kitchen, surprised that he's not hungry, and sits down across from Sirius. "Well hello sleepyhead. You really needed your sleep didn't you?"

Harry nods. "I did. I hope it was worth it. When will we get our report cards?"

"By dinnertime at the latest. I spelled nutrient potions into you for dinner and breakfast but it's almost lunch time if you want to call Dobby for some food."

"Thank you. I need to get back to my room and pack what I need for the holidays. Are we still doing dance lessons after lunch?"

"Yes, so you should go find Viktor."

"Alright, I'll go do all that now. I'm sure everyone is wondering where I am."

When Harry walks into the Ravenclaw common room there are only a few people around and he sees Viktor over by the fire. "Hi Viktor. Are you still free for dance lessons?"

"Hi Harry, yes I am. After lunch right?"

"Yes. I have to go pack for the holidays but I'll be out so we can walk to lunch in a bit."

Harry walks into his room and pulls out a big duffel. He selects a variety of clothes, knowing that he already has some at the Manor, suitable for the Manor and Austria. When he's done he calls for Dobby and has him take it to the Manor for him as there's nothing in there that he needs.

"Ow!" Viktor says loudly. Harry looks apologetic.

"I'm sorry! I can't get this down I keep stepping on your toes!"

Sirius and Remus look at each other in amusement. They've been having their dance lesson for the past 2 hours and Harry is still stepping on Viktor's toes. Since Viktor is slightly taller, they decided Viktor should lead.

"Why don't we take a break for tea?" Remus suggests.

Everyone sits down and soon they are sipping tea and eating biscuits. A school owl flies into the rooms and drops an envelope in front of Sirius. "This must be your report card."

Harry looks nervously at the envelope while Sirius opens it. He sees Sirius smiling, but still isn't sure. Deciding to put Harry out of his misery Sirius hands over the report card and Harry's mouth drops at seeing it. "All O's? I did it!"

"Yes you did pup. That is amazing, I'm proud of you."

Harry jumps up and hugs Sirius in excitement. "I have to go show Severus!"

Harry runs through the magical door and into Severus' quarters, hoping he's there. He's in luck when he sees Severus in his study. "Severus! look!" Harry yells while thrusting his report card at him.

"This is excellent Harry! I'm proud of you!" Severus says while getting up to give Harry a hug. "How are dance lessons going?"

"Awful. I keep stepping on Viktor's toes."

"You'll get the hang of it and if not we'll cast some charms on toes to prevent them from breaking, alright?"

Harry chuckles. "Sounds good. I should get back, I just sort of ran out."

Harry is standing nervously in front of the mirror. "Are you sure I look alright?"

"Yes Harry, you look great and Viktor will agree. You've tried on all your dress robes and you look great in all of them. Now you need to get down to the Great Hall or you'll be late," Remus says from behind him.

Harry sighs and they make their way downstairs, where Harry sees Viktor waiting for him. "You look great Viktor."

"So do you Harry. Don't be nervous, we'll be fine and Severus charmed my shoes remember."

Harry gives a weak smile, and when Professor McGonnagal motions for them to walk in he grasps Viktor's arm and walks behind Cedric and Hermione. He notices Hermione's hair all sleek and shiny and the beautiful pale pink dress she is wearing and knows she put extra effort into everything.

The first dance is nerve wracking for Harry. He knows he's stepped on Viktor's toes numerous times and he's glad for the charms on Viktor's shoes. When the second song starts Viktor leads him off the dance floor. "We can take a break, I know you don't like the attention."

"It's not that, I'm just terrible at it. Maybe when it's busier and it won't be noticed as much."

With a smile Viktor nods and leads them to the table to get drinks. They are soon joined by Cedric and Hermione and they talk for a while before joining the dancing crowds again. When it starts getting later and hotter in the Great Hall, which Harry has to admit looks beautiful, Viktor leads Harry out of the hall and to the front doors.

"I don't think so Mr. Krum. You may lead Mr. Potter-Black back inside. Students are not permitted outside," they hear from behind them. Looking back they see a stern looking Severus.

"Please? I just want some fresh air," Harry says.

"No Mr. Potter-Black. What part of no students allowed outside did you not get? Back inside please before I start assigning detention."

When they walk past Severus Harry feels himself get hit with a cooling charm and instantly feels better. He understands why they can't go outside, but wishes they would be able to all the same.

It is an exhausting Harry who returns to his room that night. He smiles at Alex, who he knows had gone with Luna just so the girl could go as a Third year, and collapses onto his bed.

"Tired?" Alex asks.

"Yes. Dancing is exhausting. You left early."

"I'm not a huge fan of Balls. I just came because Luna had mentioned wanting to go and she couldn't unless someone asked her."

"That's nice of you. I'm ready for sleep, especially since we're leaving early tomorrow."

"Goodnight Harry."


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38

Harry is still half asleep when he walks to his guardian's quarters the following morning. He has said goodbye to Viktor, who will be staying at Hogwarts for the holidays, and sent the last of his things to the Manor.

"Ahh Harry, there you are. Are you ready to go? We want to get some last minute Christmas shopping done before going to the Manor," Remus says.

"I'm ready to go but can we stop at Gringotts while in Diagon? I want to set up some funds from the Basilisk sale proceeds."

"Sure, we can do that. I don't need much so we have plenty of time. Let's walk down to the apparition point."

When Harry, Sirius and Remus get to Diagon they start walking to Gringotts first to get that out of the way. As soon as they walk in they are shown to Ragnok's office. "Lord Potter-Black, how can Ragnok assist you today?"

"I'd like to set up some special accounts and funds using the Basilisk sale proceeds. Also, I would like a formal letter sent to each recipient informing them of the fund and its restrictions. I want the parchment charmed so it immediately puts the Fidelius on the information so it can't be shared with anyone except those listed. Those listed should be me, Sirius, Remus, Severus and Lord Peterson. Fred and George may discuss it with each other. Can you do that?"

"Certainly Lord Potter-Black. What funds and what are the restrictions?"

"First I would like Education trusts set up for Fred Weasley, George Weasley and Hermione Granger. I want 250,000 galleons in each fund. It is only allowed to be used for educational purposes, whether that is books, school supplies, school robes, university or apprenticeship fees. As long as it is to further their education it is allowed. Next I would like a housing fund set up for Charlie and Bill Weasley with 100,000 galleons in each. This fund is only allowed to be used for housing so that they may have their own place to live instead of having to live at the Burrow when in England should they choose to remain their independence.

Next I would like a business account opened for Weasley Wizzard Wheezes with an initial starting fund of 1 million galleons. The owners of this business will be Fred and George Weasley. They are allowed to use these funds for anything related to their business, including rent for a building once they graduate Hogwarts. That is a stipulation, they have to graduate school even if it's not Hogwarts or even if they do independent tutoring outside of school, they have to sit for their NEWTS at some point. I want 10 percent stock in the company, meaning I get 10 percent of the profits going forward. This is a business investment, not a loan they have to pay back.

Last I want 2 million put into a fund for Wolfsbane research. The fund may only be accessed by Remus Lupin and Severus Snape and only be used for things related to Wolfsbane research."

"Very well Lord Potter-Black. Please read this over and sign at the bottom, it will authorize all the funds transfers. I'm not sure if you were informed but the sale brought in more than what you have distributed, what would you like to have done with the remainder of the funds?"

"Leave them as is for now but ensure I'm the only one who can access them."

"Very well. Letters will be dispatched to the recipients within the hour."

"Thank you Ragnok."

As soon as they are out of the office Remus pulls Harry into a hug. "Harry, that is incredibly generous of you. 2 million will get a lot of research done. I know you told Severus you were setting up this fund, but you should probably be far away from him when he gets the letter of just how much you put in so he has time to calm down and you won't get quite as much of a lecture on the value of a galleon."

Harry grins. "Why do you think I planned this right before we spend the afternoon shopping? Fred and George will be ecstatic while I also have no doubt they'll kick my butt for investing that much into a company that hasn't even proven itself yet. Charlie will likely invite me to a party at his new apartment in London once he moves back. I know he's been looking for a way to get back now that things are awkward at the Dragon Reserve since he broke up with his boyfriend." before Harry can say anything else he is pulled into a hug from behind by Bill.

"You foolish brat," he scolds, but they can also see how thankful he is. Working at Gringotts has its perks, one of them being that he was informed faster than any of the others. "I've been living at the Burrow since moving back, but it will be nice to get my own place especially now that I've started working here. I hope one of your guardians gives you a good kick in the behind for giving away your money like that but I'm grateful."

"You're welcome Bill. We have to get going, but I will come check out your new place once you're all moved in."

Several hours later an exhausted Harry, Sirius and Remus walk into Black Manor. They are met by a pacing Severus who immediately walks up to Harry. "2 million? Are you out of your mind?"

"Severus, I'm exhausted. These two wanted to go into practically every store on Diagon. Can I sit down before you yell at me?"

Severus pulls Harry into a bone crushing hug before letting him sit down. "I can't believe you would give away 2 million like that."

"It's for a good cause. It's important to me, I'm not just blindly giving it away."

"That may be so but that's a lot of money. Do you have any idea how much research I can do with that?"

"I do, and that's why I did that. Look, if a better Wolfsbane is developed it benefits me too."

"I ought to give you detention but I can't find it in myself to do so."

"Good because I'm too tired to move. I'm glad nobody has a password to floo here or I'd be facing some angry Weasleys soon."

"Uhh Harry, I gave the Twins a password. I assumed you'd want to see them so I figured it made sense," Sirius says.

Harry groans and settles to patiently wait for the Twins with a cup of tea. He doesn't have to wait long as less than an hour later he is grabbed from the couch by Fred and George and taken into the other room, where George quite literally kicks his behind. "You are insane little brother. Absolutely insane. Our dream is to start a shop and you've just made that possible. We're not sure how to thank you so we've decided to just kick your behind for investing in something so utterly foolish."

"It's not foolish. You'll make the shop work, I know you will."

"And the education fund? We can now get what we need for school without having to worry about it being second hand or available from Bill, Charlie or Percy's school days. I don't know who else you gave money to but I hope you didn't give anything to that prat brother of ours."

"Ron apologized, I don't hate him. He didn't get anything but that's because he hasn't proven himself yet and I'm not sure he ever will. But who knows, he might surprise us. Now while I think Severus approves of you manhandling me we should probably go back out there and show them I'm still alive. Even though my backside hurts."

For good measure Fred gives him another soft kick before they walk back into the living. It doesn't take long for Harry to retaliate and soon they are on the ground wrestling until Severus comes over to stop them. "Alright boys, knock it off. Are you staying for supper?"

"Sure! We told mum we were going out with friends. Really we just needed somewhere to celebrate where we wouldn't be overheard. By the way Harry, I saw Bill packing his stuff at the Burrow so I have a feeling he got money to move out. We now get his room which is bigger than ours and more private so thanks!"

Harry enjoys spending time with Fred and George the rest of the afternoon and evening, and he falls down on the couch with a sigh when they floo home. "Now for some peace and quiet."

"You have two letters waiting for you," Remus says while handing Harry the letters. He reads both with a smile. The first is from Hermione, thanking him profusely and outlining her plans which include either a Charms apprenticeship or a law degree after Hogwarts. The second letter is from Charlie, who berates him for giving away his money while thanking him for making it possible for him to get out of an uncomfortable situation without having to move back to the Burrow. He asks if he can stay with Harry for a few days before Hogwarts starts again while he looks for a small house or flat, and Harry quickly writes back that he's welcome and to let him know when he is coming. He then replies to Hermione that she could always do both if she really wanted to, as he's certain Professor Flitwick would love to be her Master and accommodate her university schedule.

The next morning Harry is reading a book on becoming an Animagus when Sirius comes bouncing into the library. "I want to know why you are reading that but we don't have time right now. We have a tree to decorate!"

Harry looks up slightly shocked. "A tree?"

"It's Christmas Eve! Come on! Remus and Severus just brought in the tree so now we need to decorate!"

Harry lets himself be dragged out into the living room where a huge tree is now occupying a corner of the room. "That tree is huge!"

"I know isn't it great? Those are all the decorations so lets get busy!"

Soon they are all busy decorating the tree. When they are done they step back and admire their work. "That is a good looking tree if I must say so myself," Sirius says with a grin. "The only thing missing is the star at the top. Harry, why don't you do the honors?"

"Why me?"

"Because this is your house and because I want you to do it. I'd bet anything you've never done this before."

"And how do you suppose I get it up there? I'd almost guess you don't want me to use magic."

"You are correct. One of us can lift you up there or you can get a chair or ladder to stand on."

Harry gives Sirius a disbelieving look before he's suddenly lifted into the air by Severus. "You are still much too small for your age Harry," he says before putting Harry on his shoulders. "I should not be able to lift a fourteen year old onto my shoulders."

"The view is cool from up here. Someone hand me that star."

Dobby, who has been supplying the hot chocolate and taking pictures, floats the star to Harry. Once he's put the star on top he stops Severus' hands from lifting him down. "Hold on. I want to look at the tree from up here for a minute."

"You're getting heavy Harry. You can look at it from the ground," Severus says before lifting him down.

They all look at the tree for a little while longer before Harry suddenly runs off and returns a few minutes later. He takes a pile of small squares out of his pocket before aiming his wand and enlarging them, filling the bottom of the tree with gifts. "There. Much better."

This prompts the others to go get their gifts as well and soon there are packages everywhere. "Harry, I am putting you on notice now that I do not wish to be woken up before breakfast. Sirius, that goes for you as well," Severus says sternly. "We are all old enough to wait until a decent hour to open gifts."

"Oh come on Severus! That's part of the fun!"

"No. The first person to wake me up tomorrow will get hexed." Severus doesn't miss the look Sirius and Harry share, debating whether it's worth it or not. He sighs and sends a tickling hex at the both of them. "That's just a warning."

Harry and Sirius quickly leave the room under the excuse they are checking on lunch, but Severus knows they are leaving to go plan something. He looks at Remus and shakes his head. "Can't you forbid Sirius from waking us up early?"

"I could but I'm not going to. If he's decided he's going to do it he will and I don't want to have to punish him on Christmas. You better be prepared to hex someone tomorrow."

Neither Remus nor Severus see Harry until dinner, which is extravagant as Dobby has decided they need a special dinner for Christmas Eve. "We're not going to the Weasleys tomorrow, right?" Harry asks.

"No. Molly invited us but I turned her down. We are however going over there for lunch on boxing day."

"Alright. I suppose at some point I need to pack for Austria. How are we getting there?"

"We'll be taking the floo from Heathrow Airport. They have an international floo set up which will take us there in a matter of minutes. We rented a condo so we won't have to stay in a hotel, and we should be right on the slopes. Since you haven't been skiing before we have signed you up for private lessons the first day."

"I'm excited. So do any of you have any Christmas Eve traditions?"

They all shake their heads and settle for simply talking by the fire, holding mugs of hot chocolate.

The following morning Severus wakes up from what sounds like a loud horn in the hallway. He looks at his alarm clock and groans at seeing it's barely six in the morning. He jumps out of bed, and walks into the hallway to see nothing. Remus comes stumbling out of his room, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "I knew they had something planned. Am I allowed to whoop their butts on Christmas?" Severus asks.

Remus, a little more awake now, grins at Severus. "No, which is why they did it. Come on, let's hope Dobby is smart enough to have coffee ready for us."

A tired Severus and Remus walk into the kitchen to see that Dobby had the foresight to make a big pot of coffee, and to see that Harry and Sirius are already seated. Neither of them look tired and Severus can't resist cuffing them both on the head before grabbing a big cup of coffee and sitting down. "You two are incorrigible."

Harry grins at him. "You don't know that we even did anything. So is it time for presents?"

"No, I need something to eat first since I have a feeling this will take hours."

Dobby pops in with food for all of them, and Severus is positive Harry and Sirius are going to choke with as fast as they are eating. He shares an amused look with Remus before they both start to eat extra slowly. They can tell when Harry and Sirius start getting impatient, but a little payback for having to get up so early doesn't hurt in their opinion. When they are finally done eating Harry and Sirius drag them into the living room. Severus glances at the clock in passing to see that it is barely seven.

Seeing the pile of presents, Severus immediately takes charge. He casts a charm which divides everything into four piles. One pile for each of them. "Now we can all take turns opening a gift from our own pile without having to dig under the tree. And I can sit comfortably. Harry, why don't you start since you have by far the largest pile?"

Harry starts opening his first gift, a book on Animagi from Viktor, and he grins widely. "Harry, why are you so interested in Animagi suddenly? I have a feeling Viktor knows something we don't," Sirius says.

"Well I was going to bring it up after Austria, but I want to become an Animagus."

"And you have time for that besides everything else?" Severus asks.

"I can make time. It sounds cool. Besides, I'd be much safer during the Full Moon."

"Which you will be inside for anyway."

"Yes, but extra protection never hurts."

The adults share a look and slight nod. "We will allow you to do this if Severus does it with you."

Harry looks at Severus in confusion. "I've already done the potion and know I'll be a Raven, but I've never completed the transformation. I'd like to do it together and I can help you with the potion."

"Yes!" Harry yells before hugging all three of his guardians. "I thought I was going to have to beg more. You guys are awesome!"

They continue opening gifts, which ends up taking them close to two hours. Severus is amazed by how many things he has gotten as he doesn't have many friends, but he knows half the things are from other Lords as it's customary to send something to everyone in the Sacred Twenty Eight. Most have sent him things related to Potions and he finds he doesn't mind this protocol. He looks over at Harry who is opening his last gift and smiles. The boy is surrounding by gifts, having received something from all his friends including the new ones he's made this year, the Sacred Twenty Eight, and the three of them have spoiled him.

"I can't believe all the things I've gotten! I have three entire Quidditch outfits with protection gear, more candy than I could possible eat, more school supplies then I'll use this school year, half a library worth of books, three games of Exploding Snap and two chess sets. I think I'll put those in the All House Common Room. I already have Exploding Snap and a chess set. And you three really didn't have to get me new clothes you know."

"Yes we did, you're growing. Besides, it gave us an excuse to spoil you without you complaining about it. Besides, you spoiled all three of us as well."

"I suppose that's true. So I vote we go flying."

"Isn't it a little cold?" Severus asks with a skeptical look.

"Oh come on, we're wizards, we can do warming charms!"

"I'm in!" Sirius says while jumping up from the floor.

"I'll fly for a little while but not too long. We don't want to get sick before our trip now do we?" Remus says.

"Alright Severus, you've been outvoted. Come on, it won't be so bad. You have to get used to the cold for Austria anyway."

Severus reluctantly lets himself be pulled out of his chair and they all go put on warm clothes before walking outside. Soon they are up in the air, passing the Quaffle. Harry suggests two on two and pairs himself with Severus. A highly competitive game, with some wandless wordless hexing from Harry, later and they all land amidst laughter.

"You don't play fair Harry!"

"I don't know what you are talking about. My wand stayed in my pocket the whole time."

"uhuh. Then why did I feel confused as to what I was supposed to be doing every time I got the Quaffle?"

"I don't know Sirius. You must be losing your touch. I think it's time for lunch."

Harry grins at Severus before walking inside where Dobby already has lunch waiting. Harry immediately tucks into the warm soup, starting to feel the cold from outside, while shrugging out of his coat. "That was fun but I think I'm going to stay inside this afternoon. Severus, can we start on that Animagus potion? It has to simmer for two weeks so it'd be perfect to do while we're in Austria."

Severus looks at him in surprise. "I see you've done your homework. I should have all the ingredients so we can start. Are you sure you want to do potions on Christmas?"

"No, but I want to become an Animagus so I'll make that sacrifice," Harry says with a smile. "I'm wondering what I'll be. I think it'd be cool if I could fly. It would make sense since I'm good on a broom. A snake would be cool too since I'm a parselmouth already. It'd really scare people if I was a snake, that could be fun. And if I was something really small I could sneak in everywhere and spy on people without them knowing, that could be useful."

Remus starts laughing. "No matter what you are, you will not use your Animagus form for mischief. We will know what you look like and you will get in trouble if you use it for that."

"I wouldn't dream of doing such a thing. It's not like I'm the son of a Marauder or anything. You ready to start Severus?"

"Yes, let me go put on my brewing robes and I'll meet you in the lab."

"Brewing robes?"

"Yes. I got you some as well. They have protective charms which should help in case of accidents. I forgot to mention but I had one set of school robes done for you as well so you can wear those to Potions in case someone tries to sabotage your work again."

"Oh cool. I'll go put mine on then. Sirius, Remus, don't do anything I wouldn't do while you have the house to yourself."

The rest of the afternoon Harry and Severus spend in the lab, and when they walk out just before dinner it is with Harry smiling widely. "I can't believe we got it right the first time. I was fully expecting to do it wrong, even with your help."

"You are not as bad at potions as you think Harry. Now we just have to wait two weeks for the next step, which we should be able to do before we return to Hogwarts. After that it just needs to be bottled for a week before you use it."

"I can hardly wait. Let's go see if dinner is ready yet."

It turns out that it is and Sirius and Remus are already waiting for them, along with a black owl by Harry's plate. Harry takes the envelope, which looks official, and noticing that the owl is waiting for a reply he opens it. His mouth drops upon reading it.

"What is it Harry?" Sirius asks in concern.

"It's from the Unspeakables. They ask me to come in tomorrow because they have something of great importance to show me. It has to do with a prophecy?"

"Reply back that you'll be there," Severus says. "If there is a prophecy about you you'll want to know. We can go before lunch at the Burrow."

Harry quickly writes a note back and gives it to the owl, which immediately takes off. "What exactly is a prophecy?"

"It's a prediction of sorts, and it's recorded in a small crystal ball. They are all recorded and kept in the Department of Mysteries. The only ones who can access it are the unspeakables. Most never come true because people never heard about them, and they are often self fulfilling. However, if they ask you to come in there must be one that they believe will come true for one reason or another. It might be something small, but it might be important. You won't know until you hear it. The Unspeakables are very secretive, we're not even exactly sure what they do every day or who they are as their faces and voices are always masked."

"Sounds strange. Now I'm nervous about this prophecy since they want me to come so quickly. Knowing how my life has been so far it's probably something bad. Let's forget about it and enjoy Christmas dinner. It looks like Dobby went all out!"

Conversation turns to happier things, and they discuss what all they want to do while on vacation and even the week after. By the time Harry finishes his third piece of pie he is stuffed and leans back with a sigh. "That was amazing but I'm not sure I can move."

Sirius laughs before levitating Harry from his chair and into the living room, depositing him on the couch. Harry falls over before sitting back up, all the while laughing. "I suppose that is a solution!"

They all simply relax by the fire, full from dinner and none of them needing to talk much or be active. Eventually they play some games, with Severus and Remus playing chess and Harry and Sirius playing Exploding Snap. Harry ends up going to bed before Severus and Remus have even finished their game.

"I'm nervous," Harry says while waiting in the lobby to the Department of Mysteries. They had been sent a portkey so they could portkey straight into the Department without the whole Wizarding world knowing where they're going.

"It'll be alright Harry. No matter what happens, we will deal with it."

"I know and I'm glad you all are here."

"Lord Potter-Black, please follow me," a wizard in black robes with a hood covering his face says. They follow him into what looks like a conference room with a small orb on the table.

"Please have a seat. This here is a prophecy which has been in existence for many years. It became true on the night your parents were killed. We have waited until you were old enough, and had enough support, to hear it. This prophecy was made by Sybill Trelawney in the presence of Albus Dumbledore. It was recorded, but it was leaked to Lord Voldemort. Prophecies often come true because people who have heard them have made it so, and Lord Voldemort acted on the prophecy. This prophecy is the reason your parents went into hiding, it is also the reason you have that scar. I'll let you listen to it and then I will stay while you discuss it. This room has strong privacy charms and it is also charmed so the moment you leave the room, nobody can get the information you hear, just like with a Fidelius."

Harry nods and the Unspeakable taps the orb with his wand, starting the prophecy.

_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches_

_born to those who have thrice defied him,_

_born as the seventh month dies._

_and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal,_

_but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not._

_And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives._

_the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies._

They all sit staring at the orb in silence. Suddenly they feel Harry's power radiate around him, and the orb chatters to tiny pieces. "Harry, calm. Occlude. Deep breath," Severus starts coaching.

Slowly Harry calms down. "That son of a bitch! He targeted my parents simply because I was born at the end of July! This could have also meant Neville since he was born the day before me! He obviously marked me with this damn scar."

"Harry, when your parents went into hiding so did Neville's parents. He came after you first, but it could have meant either of you. He has marked you as his equal that night," Remus calmly says, feeling anything but calm.

"And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives. That means I have to be the one to kill him whenever he manages to get a body, but it doesn't say I will survive. It could also mean that he'll kill me or I'll die while killing him. I have to say this explains why Dumbledore is so focused on me."

"Harry, listen to me. You will not face him alone. If you truly have to be the one to kill him, we will all be there to help you. We will do everything in our power to make sure he dies before he gains a body. You are not alone in this. Yes it explains why the headmaster is so focused on you, but while he has been focusing on just you, you have been training and you have been building a huge network of friends who will help you in any way they can," Sirius says, taking Harry's hands in his before pulling him into a hug.

"Lord Potter-Black, we have interpreted the prophecy the same way you have. Lord Voldemort is rumored to only know the first part of the prophecy that states that you have the power to vanquish him. He does not know he marked you as his equal or that you have a power he knows not. I just saw your magical power, which is incredible, but I think there might be something else you have that will help. He also doesn't know that he has to be one to kill you, or you have to be the one to kill him. Keep that in mind. We will continue to work on this as well, and should we find out anything else we will inform you. As of now the prophecy is destroyed and can't be heard by anyone else."

"Thank you. I'm sorry I blew it up. It was the only thing in the room to focus my anger on and I couldn't occlude in time. Whatever I was expecting today, that wasn't it and now I have to go be cheerful at a lunch. Thank you for your time and for informing me of this, as I'm sure Dumbledore wouldn't have."

Harry stands up and walks out of the room, feeling the protective charms wash over him, and the others follow. They take another portkey back to Black Manor where Harry immediately walks up to his room to change. He has decided to look like a Lord at the lunch today, not like a school boy, and a few minutes later he comes back down in his nicest everyday robes, complete with cufflinks and dragonhide boots. "I'm ready to go."

Sirius grins at seeing him. "I see the look you're going for. I think it'll work. Severus, did they invite you?"

"Yes they did. They also invited the headmaster, Minerva, Filius and Pomona. It seems they've invited all the Heads of House, why is beyond me. I will be changing into nice robes as well and apparate there separately."

"Hold on, I'm going to change. Remus, you should as well. Let's shock all of them," Sirius says with a smirk.

Sirius and Remus change, and it is therefore that three impeccable looking wizards apparate to the Burrow a few minutes later. When they walk in, everyone stops talking and stares at them, most notably Albus and Molly. Harry pretends like nothing is wrong and walks over to the twins. "Fred, George. How was Christmas?"

"Excellent!" Fred says loudly. "You really made a statement there," he whispers.

Harry just grins back before greeting everyone else in the room. When Severus appears the room once more falls silent and Harry walks over and properly greets Severus according to protocol. Nobody fails to notice how grown up Harry looks in his role as Lord, and how at ease his formal conversation with Severus is. Sirius and Remus notice the storm in Albus' eyes.

Ron interrupts his conversation with Severus. "Harry! You can't possibly be planning to fly in those clothes! Why didn't you wear something more suitable?"

"This is a lunch Ron, I wasn't planning to fly today. I am dressed for lunch."

"Since when do you dress for different occasions?"

"Since I have found out I have a certain status in this world. I intend to uphold that status as much as I am capable. It doesn't hurt to practice as much as possible when not at school. Now if you'll excuse me, I still have to greet Professor McGonnagal, Professor Flitwick and the Headmaster."

Harry walks over to where the professors are gathered and greets each of them politely. He has just finished when Molly calls for everyone to take a seat and Harry sits down at the table between Sirius and Fred. Lunch is loud and Harry can't stop laughing over the banter back and forth between the twins and Sirius. When Sirius suggest an elaborate prank which would affect most of the school, Remus smacks him on the back of the head and threatens him with more should he continue to give the boys ideas. Harry loses it completely at the offended look on Sirius' face, causing everyone to look in his direction. Most are looking with fondness at seeing him so happy and carefree.

When they return to the Manor after lunch Harry walks upstairs to pack for their trip. They plan to leave very early in the morning and he wants to be ready. They left soon after lunch was over under the excuse that they had to leave early, and he's glad. He lays down on his bed and looks up at the ceiling, thinking about how different his life is. Last year he was at Hogwarts over the break, now he's at his home and enjoying his time. Tomorrow he's leaving the country for the first time, on a trip he knows will be a great experience.

A few hours later Severus finds him asleep on top of the covers. He transfigures his clothes into pajamas and spells the covers over him. He smiles at seeing Harry's packed bags by the foot of his bed, knowing that the boy is excited. He's never been skiing himself and has to admit he is just as excited.

"Harry hurry up! We're going to miss our appointment at the floo!"

"I'm coming!" Harry yells back while running down the stairs. "I'm ready. Are we apparating?"

"Yes we are. Let's go, we should be right on time."

They get to Heathrow right on time and get in line for their floo. "Alright Harry, I will be flooing with you since it's a little different from flooing through a regular floo and takes longer. They advise nobody to floo by themselves internationally the first time. Are you ready?" Sirius asks.

Harry nods and steps into the fireplace with Sirius. A few minutes of sickening spinning later Harry stumbles out of the other end. Severus is already waiting for them and immediately hands Harry a stomach soother. "That is not a pleasant feeling. I suppose it's better than hours on a plane."

"It probably is. Why don't we all head to condo and get settled. After that we can walk through town and see where everything is. Skiing lessons are first thing in the morning so we have all day today to explore."

"Am I doing lessons by myself?"

Severus shakes his head. "I'm doing them with you. Sirius and Remus have gone skiing before but I haven't so I will be joining you."

"I'm glad. Let's go see this condo. I hope it has a hot tub."

They walk down the road from the bus station they arrived at, down the main street of the town. Harry is constantly getting distracted but Severus keeps guiding him along. They arrive at the building their condo is in and get the keys in the office. When they walk into their condo, which Harry is excited to see is in the middle of town, Harry looks around in amazement. "This is wicked!"

He runs into each bedroom finally picking one. "This one is mine!"

Each bedroom, there are four, has its own bathroom. There is a space to put your skis and snowboards by the front door. The hallway then opens into a large living room with a kitchen to the right. To the left are the bedrooms. Harry, after enlarging his bags, walks towards the french doors on the opposite side of the living room and opens them onto the large back porch. "Yes!" he yells loudly. "There's a hot tub out here!"

Sirius comes up behind him and grins. "We will have to use it tonight and make sure it works properly."

"Wonderful idea. Now lets go explore town."

They walk through town and explore all the shops. They find a place to rent skis and take them back to the condo. When it's time for lunch they stop in a little cafe to eat something before continuing the walk through town.

Harry falls down on the couch with a sigh at the end of the day. "I love this place. All the little shops, and everyone is so friendly!"

"This is where your father's parents took James and I during our last year at Hogwarts. I have amazing memories of this place," Sirius says with a smile. "And it hasn't changed a bit."

"Remus have you been here before?"

"No I haven't. We usually went to Switzerland for skiing. We only went three times in my life before we stopped going, but I've always loved it. I heard the stories about this town and I have to admit it's every bit as nice as James and Sirius described."

"I'm excited to go skiing tomorrow. The slopes look fun."

"Why don't you head to bed? You'll need all your energy and strength for tomorrow."

"I am a little tired from getting up early and walking around so much. Goodnight."

"What happened?" Sirius asks, looking concerned.

"I don't know. One minute I was going down the slope just fine and the next I was upside down and my ankle was hurting," Harry says, grimacing as the doctor touches his ankle.

"I'm afraid it's broken young man. You'll have to go to the hospital the next town over for a proper cast but for now I will put a splint on it."

"Thank you doctor. We will make sure we get his ankle all fixed up."

As soon as Harry has a splint on his leg Severus lifts him into his arms and they walk back to their condo. Severus carefully puts Harry on the couch. "Stay here. I'll go get some skelegrow. It's a good thing I packed a full medical kit, just in case."

Sirius sits down on the couch and puts Harry's head on his lap, stroking his hair. Remus sits down in one of the armchairs. "You really have the worst luck Harry. First day on skis and you already break something."

"I should have cast cushioning charms. I was doing really well too! The instructors said I would be just fine on the slopes tomorrow."

"We'll cast charms tomorrow. Not many people saw you fall so it won't be questioned how you got back on skis so fast. Severus will have you fixed up in no-time."

"I sure will. Now you know Skelegrow tastes terrible, but it's necessary if you want to ski at all during this trip," Severus says, handing Harry a small cup of the potion. Harry grimaces before swallowing it.

"I can't give you a pain potion until the Skelegrow is done doing it's work. Since it's just a break and not vanished bones this time, it will take about two hours. Let's order some food and make some tea. It will help keep you focused on something other than the pain in your ankle. Don't try to stay strong, we've all been in your place before so we know it hurts. I'll call the cafe across the street and have some food delivered, it's almost dinner time anyway."

Harry just nods, closing his eyes as he feels the potions starting to work. Sirius continues to run his fingers through his hair in a calming motion, and Harry finds it soothing. When Severus returns with tea he gratefully takes the cup. "I dislike you right now. You're a Potions Master, you should make these things easier and less painful or at least better tasting."

"Feel free to dislike me right now. I'm sure that will change when you're healed and by then you'll have to get creative to make it up to me for insulting my potions. Now I've ordered food and it should be here in half an hour."

"Your potions might be awful but this tea is wonderful."

"I'm glad it meets your approval," Severus says with a grin.

When Harry finishes his tea he groans when a sharp pain shoots through his leg. Sirius grabs his hand and Harry squeezes it through another sharp pain. When the food arrives Harry's pain has lessened somewhat and he sits up to eat. "This food is delicious."

When they finish eating Severus checks Harry's ankle. "I think it's healed but I want you to stay off it for a little while longer just in case. Let me go get a minor pain potion for you, and after that I want you to go to bed. It will help finish the healing."

"But it's early."

"I know it is, but sleep improves healing. Here is the pain potion and I'll carry you to bed."

Harry grumbles and complains but lets himself be put to bed. The Skelegrow combined with pain potion is making him sleepy, and he figures the sooner he goes to sleep the sooner he can be on his skis again.

The following morning Sirius, Remus and Severus watch with trepidation how Harry is flying down the slope at breakneck speed. When he gets to the bottom where they are standing he grins widely. "That was amazing! Let's go up again! Are you guys coming this time?"

"Yes we will but could you go a little slower? It is scary seeing you go so fast!" Remus says.

"Oh come on, I'm a Quidditch player. We love speeds and we don't fear a little bit of danger. Skiing is every bit as fun as I thought it would be."

Sirius smiles and shakes his head. "You're just like your father in this. Come on, let's go back up."

They continue skiing all morning and when they stop for lunch even Severus is more comfortable on skis. "I'm not sure I'll ever go as fast as Harry and Sirius, but I have to admit there is an adrenaline rush with this skiing. No wonder you are usually so giddy after Quidditch."

Severus decides to take a break from skiing that afternoon and read a book instead, and Remus decides to join him. Sirius and Harry plan to go to a different slope, this one a little bit harder, and take off as soon as they are done eating. Neither Severus nor Remus is surprised when Harry and Sirius return with excitement in their eyes just before dinner.

"We have to try the expert slope tomorrow Sirius. This one was even better, and I can't imagine the thrill of the expert one!"

"I think you need a little more practice on this one first. It won't hurt. Maybe tomorrow afternoon. Besides, I think you scared the others on the slope with how fast you were going. You do realize you're not supposed to go straight down, right?"

"But it's more fun that way! You should have seen the looks on their faces when I was flying by!"

Sirius grins. "Oh I did on a couple. I actually got scolded by several for allowing you to do that. I think they were offended that I laughed."

"I assume you two had fun?" Remus asks.

"It was amazing Remus. I can't wait to get back out there tomorrow," Harry says. "Are we going out to eat or staying here?"

"I say we go out to eat somewhere," Sirius says. "There is this really nice restaurant just up the road from where you can see the practice slope, and it's lit up at night so you can watch people practice while eating."

"Sounds perfect! I'm going to change out of my snowsuit real quick," Harry says. "And we are going to try out the hot tub tonight!"

Once they are all changed they stroll down the sidewalk until they get to the restaurant Sirius mentioned. As soon as they walk in Harry is amazed. He can tell this is a more upscale restaurant simply by looking at the multiple sets of silverware, multiple glasses and white tablecloths on all the tables, but what really catches his eye is the large glass wall at the back. Sirius requests a table by the window, and Harry sits down with excitement. Already they can see various levels of skiers going up and down the slopes. "Those little kids over to the side are adorable," Harry says with a wistful smile.

"I looked like that once. Wobbly on big skis but wanting to be big and go down the slopes like everyone else," Sirius says with a grin. "Naturally I ignored all the warnings and tried to go down the slopes anyway. I've tasted more Skelegrow in my life than I care to admit."

Everyone laughs, knowing this is likely very true. "Good evening gentlemen, my name is Joshua and I'll be your server this evening. May I offer you a sample of our house wine, or would you like to look at our wine menu?"

Harry looks at his guardians with hopeful eyes, but they all shake their heads. "Don't even think about it Harry, you're too young. I will have a glass of your house Chardonnay please," Sirius says.

The others put in their drink order, with Harry reluctantly ordering a soda. "We're on vacation. One little sample won't hurt."

"Maybe so but you are not of legal drinking age so he wouldn't have given it to you anyway. There's no need to rush, soon you'll be old enough to have a glass of wine at dinner. You've seen the effects of alcohol, you don't want to rush into that until you are old enough to handle it."

"I suppose. Oh look! The kids are now all sledding down the hill! That looks like fun."

"There is a big hill behind our condo. We can go sledding there one day if you'd like. I saw that the place we rented our skis has a variety of sleds we can rent," Remus says with a smile. "I have to admit I've never gone sledding."

Sirius looks at him in positive horror. "We'll have to do that tomorrow then. We have to fix this problem. Never been sledding, how is that even possible! We'll rent the sleds on our way home so we'll have them ready. Harry, you'll love sledding. Severus, I have a feeling you won't appreciate rolling around in the snow but you are going down the hill in a sled at least once."

"And do I get a say in this?" Severus asks, pretend to look affronted.

"No you do not. You'll love it and then try to hide it, so I'm making it easy on you by letting you say I made you do it."

That's how Severus finds himself on a plastic sled, flying down the hill behind their condo the following afternoon. When he reaches the bottom, where Harry is waiting for him, he rolls off the sled before quickly standing up. "That wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," he says with a scowl, but Harry can see the excitement in his eyes.

"Come on Severus, I want to go down the hill together. Imagine how fast we'd go!"

They sled all afternoon, and Severus, despite his protests, participates in everything that is suggested. When Harry suggests surfing down the hill on the plastic sled, Severus puts a stop to it. "I think that's a terrible idea and likely to result in the need of pain potions and possible Skelegrow. I think we should head inside. That hot tub felt amazing last night after a day in the cold, and since we are all covered in snow it might not be a bad idea before dinner."

The remainder of their trip passes in much the same fashion, and by the end Harry is exhausted but happier than he's been in a long time. "Thank you for this trip, it was amazing. I didn't even once think about everything that's happening at home. I think we should do this every year."

"Glad you enjoyed it cub, we were happy to take you. This really was a good idea and I second the notion to this every year. Now let's get home and relax these sore muscles."

Dobby immediately takes their bags when they get home, and they all sit down on the couch. "It's only January 2nd, we still have a week at home. Harry, have you done your holiday work?"

"No Severus, I was planning on doing that this week. I also want to make a list of spells I want to learn this term in our extra lessons, besides becoming an Animagus. I've decided not to think about the prophecy until I absolutely have to, but it does explain why the Headmaster wants me in his clutches. It also explains why he hasn't tried to do something about Voldemort before he regains a body. I wonder if he's been testing me over the past few years. I mean, he is keyed into the Hogwarts wards. He had to know what Quirrel was, and he had to know what was going on with the Basilisk. Maybe he's been testing me to see if I'm strong enough to take on Voldemort in the end. It also explains this stupid Tournament. He didn't seem entirely surprised that I was entered as a Champion, so I'm wondering he had something to do with it? Through their actions both Voldemort and Dumbledore are making the prophecy come true. Even the unspeakable admitted that most prophecies are self-fulfilling because those involved believe them to be true."

"And you are probably right. We will simply focus on getting you ready to face just about anything and we'll go from there. That's about all we can do. We also need to get you ready for the Second Task which includes swimming lessons."

"I'm not worried about the task yet, I know I'll be ready by then. Do I have time to go flying before dinner?"

"You do. We'll call you when it's ready."

The remainder of the holidays Harry spends half his days doing his holiday schoolwork and working ahead some, while also making a list of things he wants to learn in extra lessons. The other half of his time is spent playing games, working on his Animagus potion with Severus, flying and simply relaxing.

AN: Up next we find out Harry's Animagus form (suggestions welcome, I'm currently debating between 2 forms), practice for the 2nd task and the 2nd task itself, a closer look at Harry's extra lessons and social life at Hogwarts, run in with the Headmaster.


	39. Chapter 39

AN: Loved all the suggestions for the Animagus form Harry should take! I hope you guys like what I decided on. The details about the animal are from all over the internet, I take no credit for that.

Chapter 39

"Severus! Are you in here?" Harry yells into Severus' quarters.

"Yes I am Harry. Go into your living room and I'll be there in a minute with the potion. You need to be somewhere comfortable so might as well be on your couch. I know Sirius and Remus want to be there as well."

Harry runs back into the living room and sits down on the couch, waiting impatiently. He's been distracted all week, knowing that today is the day he finds out his Animagus form. They have decided not tell anyone outside their 'family', which includes Filius and Minerva, what they are doing since his Animagus form might come in useful especially with nobody knowing about it. Sirius and Remus walk into the room and grin at Harry, seeing his impatience.

"Calm down Harry, it won't make it go faster. You'll see your form soon. Once you know what it is, we will get a book on it and find out as much as we can about what all you can do. It is also important you understand your animal as it will help you when you start practicing the shape shifting. Minerva and I will be doing that with you and Severus," Sirius says with a smile, ruffling Harry's hair.

Severus walks into the room, holding a potion bottle. "You need to drink this quickly while sitting down. You will go into a sort of trance where you will be able to visualize your form. Once you have seen everything you need to see, it will bring you back and you will be able to tell us. Just let everything happen and don't fight it. Are you ready?"

"Yes Severus, I've been ready for weeks."

"Alright. Good luck."

Harry quickly swallows the potion and hands the vial back just before he feels himself slip into what feels like a dream. He is standing in the backyard of Black Manor, watching several animals in the woods. He sees a fox running in the distance, and several deer drinking by a creek. HE wonders if either of those are his form, but none of them stand out or approach him. He sees some bunnies and small birds, hoping those aren't his form either. Suddenly a large bird flies in front of him and lands on a branch. Harry walks closer to examine it, and when he notices the lighting bolt that's faded into the fur on its forehead he knows this is his Animagus form. He recognizes it as some form of Eagle, but he isn't sure exactly what. Suddenly the bird glows gold, and then he is pulled out of the dream and is staring at his guardians."

"So?" Sirius asks. "What are you?"

"I'm not sure. I think it's an Eagle but I'm not sure what kind. I was thinking I wasn't sure when it suddenly glowed gold and I was pulled back here."

"Can you describe it?" Severus asks.

"It was dark brown, with lighter brown on the nape. There were white markings on the tail and wings. It had a faded light brown lightning bolt on its forehead."

"Since it flared gold, I'd say you are a Golden Eagle," Remus says thoughtfully. "Hold on, I have a book on birds here. Let me get it and you can tell me if that's it."

Remus leaves the room and returns a few minutes later with a book, flipping through it. "Here, Golden Eagle. Look at this picture, is that what you saw?"

"Yes! That's it! What else does it say?"

"The golden eagle belongs to the family of Accipitridae. They use their agility and speed, along with powerful feet and sharp talons to snatch up their prey. The golden eagle is very large, ranging from 66 to 102 cm in length and 1.8 to 2.35 meters in wingspan. A typical unhurried speed for a soaring golden eagle is 45-52 kilometers per hour, while attaining speeds up to 190 kilometers per hour when hunting. When diving after prey, the golden eagle can attain speeds of 240 to 320 kilometers per hour. It is one of the two fastest living animals on earth, alongside the Peregrine Falcon."

"Wicked!" Harry exclaims.

"That sounds great Harry. I'm sure there is much more information to be found in the library, but that's all this book says about it."

"I will research it more. I want to know as much as I can. That is exciting though, I'm glad I'm not something dull like a bunny."

Sirius laughs. "I would have laughed if you had been a bunny. Now we need to come up with an Animagus name for you. Pronglet just won't work for golden eagle. We'll also need to come up with one for Severus."

"I don't need an Animagus name," Severus scowls.

"Yes you do. Everyone has an Animagus name. Now I suggest we start next Sunday. That gives Harry enough time to research his form and become familiar with it, and we can make sure Minerva can be here as well. Having 2 animagi here will help greatly."

"Why can't we start today?"

"Because you need to research your form first, I want Minerva here and I have other plans for today. Today you are going to learn to swim."

"I'd rather work on my Animagus form."

"That's too bad. You need to learn to swim Harry. We have conjured a small pool in Severus' living room so let's head in there. I'll transfigure your trousers into swim shorts."

Harry reluctantly walks into Severus' quarters, not looking forward to swimming. He's had a slight fear of deep water ever since Dudley tried to drown him when he was little. He feels Sirius transfigure his trousers into swim shorts and he reluctantly takes off his shirt. He feels charms wrap around him and looks at Sirius in question.

"It's like a life vest for wizards. You won't be able to drown with it on, but it also won't hinder your swimming. Now get in the water and we'll start. Get in on this end, it's not as deep as the other end."

Harry doesn't even ask how they got the large pool in the small living room, knowing it's wizard space. He slowly gets in on the shallow end and stands in the water. "Alright Harry. I'm going to let this dummy in the water and it will swim to the other end. Watch the movements."

Sirius puts a dummy in the water and Harry watches it swim to the other end and back. "Do you understand the movements?"

"Yes. Do you want me to try?"

"Not yet. Walk down until your head is barely above water. I'm going to teach you to float first. Now the charm will not prevent you from going underwater because if it did you'd never learn to float, but it will push you back up as soon as your mouth and nose are both under water so don't panic. Alright, lift your feet up and kick down so you keep your head above water."

Harry does as he's told, trusting that he won't drown, and he succeeds fairly quickly simply by using basic survival instincts.

"Alright. Now try to swim like the dummy did. It's alright if you need a few tries."

Harry glances at the dummy, which is still swimming back and forth and tries to mimic its movements. He stops and starts several times, each time looking at the dummy again to see what he's doing wrong. Finally he gets the hang of it and he clumsily swims to the other end and back. "Very well done Harry! The dummy really helps because you can see exactly what to do. Now swim back and forth until you feel comfortable with it. Once you do, I'll take the charm off."

Remus looks at Sirius. "I didn't know that charm or a dummy like that existed. I would have learned much faster if my parents had known."

"It's how I learned how to swim. It makes it much easier and much safer."

"My parents used the same method. It really is quite simple," Severus says while walking into the room. "Minerva says she's fine with next Sunday after lunch. She's ecstatic at Harry's form and can't wait to get started."

"Good. We didn't quite use the usual channels to become Animagi so I'm glad to have her here. We can also file the forms with her as Deputy Headmistress which makes it legal but kept a secret."

"Sirius, I'm ready for the charm to be taken off but keep watch just in case, alright?"

"I will Harry," Sirius says while waving his wand. "No more charm. I'll be watching closely."

Harry swims to the other end, at first insecure but slowly more confident in his abilities. He swims back and stands up, grinning. "I can swim!"

"Yes you can. Swim some more so we can be certain you have it down. After that you can get dried off and we'll do some wandless and wordless magic before dinner."

Harry swims several more laps, gaining confidence in his swimming as he does so. When he gets out he is hit with a drying charm from three directions. "Thanks guys, I think one would have been sufficient but this works. Sirius, can you transfigure my clothes back?"

Soon Harry is dressed in his trousers again and he puts on his shirt, before following them into the other living room. "Alright Harry, we're going to focus on wandless spells right now. The reason for that is because it will be harder to reach for your wand under water and we want you to be able to cast the spells we think you need without needing your wand. You also won't be able to talk, so non-verbal is crucial. We know you've done some of both, and you know all the spells you need in the lake. Go ahead and do a few easier spells before we get started on the ones you need."

Harry starts trying some first and second year spells, succeeding fairly easily. "This is much easier than it used to be. This is because my magic is getting stronger, right?"

"Correct. Now first, to fight a grindylow there are two options. They hate fire, so you can fight them with either fire or trick them and use a bright light. While fire won't work underwater, bright light will. Because they can't distinguish between that, sending a Lumos Maxima at them will often get them to leave you alone. Go ahead and try a Lumos Maxima. I know you haven't been taught that yet in classes, so if you need to do it with a wand or verbally at first, that's alright."

Harry practices with his wand first, then non-verbally and finally wandlessly. He struggles a little bit with the wandless. "Remember to focus your magical energy Harry."

Harry takes a deep breath and closes his eyes to focus. He then opens his eyes and focuses his magical energy on the spell, creating such a bright Lumos Maxima that everyone is momentarily blinded. "Whoops. Sorry guys," Harry says sheepishly after cancelling the spell. "At least now we know I can do the spell."

Sirius cuffs him on the back of the head once he can see again. "Cheeky brat. Try to do it without blinding everything and everyone around you."

Harry does the spell again, and this time it is successful without blinding anyone. "Well done Harry. Now try Stupefy. It will work against Grindylows as well, and should you be unable to talk your way around the Merpeople you can use it on them as well."

Harry practices for a while before succeeding. To prove that he was successful, he sends the hex at Severus, who isn't expecting it and doesn't bring up his shield fast enough. Sirius and Remus look at Harry in shock before bursting out laughing. "You might want to run before he regains consciousness Harry. Lessons are over anyway, so go ahead and hide somewhere in the castle. We'll calm him down. Well done," Sirius says.

Harry grins before running out of their quarters. Sirius and Remus share a look before ennervating Severus. "That little brat! Where is he?!"

Sirius pushes Severus down on the couch. "Calm down Severus. He just proved that he could do the spell, and he also proved that he can catch you off guard. Just let it go and be proud that he can do it wandlessly and non-verbal, after having learned how to swim."

Severus grumbles some, but finally nods. "Fine. But I will get him back at some point."

Harry runs into the Gryffindor common room, looking for his friends but doesn't see them. He then walks to the Hufflepuff common room and there aren't many people there either. He sees Cedric and walks over. "Hi Cedric. Are you busy or do you want to go flying?"

"Hi Harry! Actually, I need a break from studying. Let's go fly. I think some others are already on the pitch to teach Alex how to fly so we can join them."

"Sweet. Let's go."

When they get to the pitch they see that there is a small group already there, teaching Alex to fly or flying for themselves. Harry sees Viktor and walks over. "Want to play catch the snitch with Cedric and I?"

"Sure," Viktor says with a smile. "You get out of lessons early?"

"I stupefied Severus so Sirius thought it would be a good idea. Cedric, you ready to play catch the snitch with us?"

"Absolutely! Release the snitch to expert level and let's do this."

Most of the other students have landed and are now watching the three best seekers the school currently has. They take to the air and the snitch disappears. As soon as they spot it they start chasing it. On the ground Alex is looking in awe.

"Seeing them fly is beautiful to look at. It's almost like a ballet in the sky."

"Harry and Viktor are amazing fliers. Harry could be professional if he wanted to, and Viktor already is. Cedric is a good flier but he doesn't stand a chance against those two," Hermione says. "He knows it too, and has said as much. He's said he just loves flying, even if he can't win against Harry."

"Oh look! Harry caught the snitch!"

"And Viktor just kissed Harry! Oh boy, it's good his guardians aren't here."

"Aren't they Ms. Granger?"

Hermione turns around to see Sirius standing behind her, grinning. "No worries, I won't say anything. His first kiss, he's growing up. I'm going to share with Remus. Bye!"

When the three seekers land, Harry's face is flushed and Cedric is grinning. Cedric gives Hermione a quick kiss and soon she is blushing as well. "Harry, Sirius was here and he saw. He went to tell Remus. Just want to prepare you for teasing later on."

"It's a good thing he didn't see our first kiss then," Harry grins.

Hermione just looks at him. "That wasn't it?"

Harry shakes his head and looks at Viktor shyly. "I see you and Cedric have moved to that step though."

Hermione blushes and Harry grins. "Let's head to dinner."

The group all walk to dinner. Harry, Viktor and Alex head to the Ravenclaw table, Hermione to Gryffindor and Cedric to Hufflepuff. Harry glances up at the Head Table and sees Remus and Sirius grinning at him, while Severus glares at him. He gives Severus a cheeky grin before sitting down. At the end of dinner, before leaving with Alex to head to their room to do homework, he gives Viktor a deep kiss. He can hear the shocked gasps around them and a quick look at the Head Table tells him most of the professors are shocked as well. Viktor and Harry grin at each other before Harry walks out.

"What was that about Harry?" Alex asks. "You don't seem like the type to do that in public."

"I want to shock everyone. I'm not sure why. Sirius and Remus were grinning at me when I walked in and looked shocked to pieces when we walked out. I'd say mission accomplished."

"Mr. Potter. Please follow me to my office," Harry hears the Headmaster say from behind him. "Your guardians will meet you there."

Harry sighs before following the headmaster to his office. Sirius and Remus are already there, but Harry can't tell what they are thinking from looking at their faces. "Mr. Potter," the headmaster starts.

"I'm sorry to interrupt sir, but it's Lord Potter-Black."

"Very well. Lord Potter-Black, that little display in the Great Hall was unnecessary. While I'm not against relationships at Hogwarts, there is no need for public displays. It was obvious you did it on purpose. I have called you in here to give you a formal reprimand. I do not want to call you on this again or you will be in trouble, is that understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Very well, that's all I wanted to say."

"Sir, may I ask a question?"

"Yes Lord Potter-Black."

"Why did you not get me out of the Tournament. You had to have come across the ritual to get me out of it within the first 24 hours when the Tournament was organized. Why not allow me to get out?"

"I wasn't sure if it would work, and it's for the best."

"For the best headmaster? How is making me compete in these dangerous tasks for the best?"

"You are training and getting stronger. You will come out of this alright, there is no harm done. You are bonding with your guardians, you are not alone in this."

"Unbelievable. You would let a fourteen year old compete in this Tournament, knowing that there was a way out?"

"I did not think of that option until it was too late."

"I do not believe that Headmaster. I hope you can live with your conscience if something happens to me," Harry says before turning around and walking out of the office. Sirius and Remus stare between the two before excusing themselves and walking after Harry. They catch up to him in the hallway and steer him towards the teacher's wing. When they walk through the common room, Sirius motions for Minerva, Filius and Severus to follow them and they all walk into the living room.

"Harry, what's going on?" Severus asks.

"Hold on, I'm occluding my emotions. If I don't, I will blow up. Sirius, get Lord Peterson and Amelia Bones and a pensieve. Now."

Sirius immediately jumps to it, while Remus explains what just happened in the Headmaster's office. Severus walks over and pulls Harry into a hug, which Harry gratefully sinks into. He needs it, he needs someone to ground him and keep him calm. Severus keeps holding Harry until Lord Peterson gets there. He is quickly filled in, and it doesn't take long for Amelia Bones to floo in as well. "Would someone explain what is going on?"

"Madame Bones, I would like you to view some things in a pensieve. Lord Peterson, Minerva and Filius, Severus, I'd like you to watch it as well so you know what's going on."

Harry puts memories of everything he's found out since that summer in the pensieve, including the meeting that evening, and sits back on the couch. They wait for everyone to finish watching the memories and when they come out Minerva pulls Harry into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry Harry. I will do whatever I can to help you."

Amelia Bones looks furious. "Lord Potter-Black, with your permission I would like to build a case against the headmaster. May I take these memories?"

"Yes ma'am, and please call me Harry. Lord Peterson can help you with anything you need or if you need to get in contact with me."

"Very well. I will take these and get back to my office. We will at the very least get him declared incompetent as headmaster of Hogwarts, and will try for more."

"Thank you Madame Bones."

When Amelia is gone, Lord Peterson pulls Harry into a hug. "I'm so sorry. I know we suspected, but actually hearing him say it makes it hard for me not to go up there right now. What display was he talking about?"

Harry blushes. "I kissed Viktor in the middle of the Great Hall."

Severus cuffs him on the head. "That's for hexing me. Little brat. And I'm sure Madame Bones will deal with this. Minerva, Filius, please do not discuss my familiarity with Harry outside these rooms."

"Don't worry Severus, I've known for a while," Filius says. Minerva nods. "I have known as well. Don't worry, we will protect you."

"So Harry, you hexed Severus?" Filius, smiling at Harry.

Harry nods. "We were practicing wandless and nonverbal spells. I was just proving that I was able to do stupefy."

"You can do wandless and wordless magic Harry? So why are you not doing better in my class?" Minerva asks.

"We've only recently started on wandless and wordless. And I try my best in Transfiguration. It's not my strongest subject but I do alright."

"You do. And next Sunday we'll be starting your Animagus lessons so you'll get even better."

"Animagus?" Lord Peterson asks.

Harry nods enthusiastically. "I'm going to be a Golden Eagle. Severus will be a Raven."

"That is exciting. I hope you succeed, and expect to see you shift whenever you succeed. I know Eric will be excited to hear about this."

Harry smiles. "Don't tell him. When I succeed I want to surprise him."

"Sounds good. I'm heading home and starting on this case against the headmaster. Could I get a copy of those memories as well?"

"Yes," Harry says, summoning a vial and filling it with memories.

"Thank you. I will make sure you are told when something happens with this. For now, I trust i don't need to say that we need to keep quiet and occlude about this."

Everyone nods and Lord Peterson takes his leave. Harry turns around to see Severus with crossed arms scowling at him. Harry decides that whatever Severus is upset about must be insignificant, so he walks over and wraps his arms around him. It takes a minute, but then he hugs Harry back and Harry can feel tension leaving Severus' body. "I want to lock you in a room and hide you away from the world," Severus mumbles.

"I know," is Harry's only answer.

Minerva and Filius share a look before sitting down. "I think you guys should explain how Severus fits into this."

Harry lets go of Severus and sits down on Sirius' lap as opposed to conjuring another chair or summoning one from the kitchen. While Harry tells the story of his summer and everything since, Sirius rubs circles on his back to keep him calm, knowing that if Harry doesn't he'll get angry thinking about everything again.

"That is quite the story Harry. I want you to know that I've always been against your placement with the Dursleys, and I will support you in any way I can," Minerva says with a tight smile.

"Thank you professor. I have to go before I'm late for curfew. I'm sure Alex is wondering where I went and I'm sure Viktor knows about my meeting with the headmaster by now. I will see you all tomorrow."

"How much trouble are you in?" Viktor asks. He is in the Ravenclaw common room with Harry, Alex and Luna.

"None. It was just a formal reprimand. So basically no public signs of affection and we'll be fine."

"That's good. I have to admit I was surprised."

Harry grins. "I was doing it on purpose for the shock effect."

"I see. Well I suppose you succeeded."

Harry turns to Viktor. "Are you upset?"

"No, I'm not upset."

"Viktor. You look upset."

Viktor sighs. "I guess I'm a little upset. You know I don't like public displays of any kind or having attention drawn to me."

"I'm sorry. I didn't think about the rest of the Great Hall. I was doing it for my guardians."

"Just avoid it next time, please."

"I will, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you," Harry says, looking upset.

Viktor pulls Harry into a one side hug. "Don't worry about it, I'm not upset anymore. Just don't do it again please."

"I won't, I'm sorry. I need to go to bed, I'm exhausted. Homework will just have to wait."

"Good night Harry."

"Sirius! Are we starting?" Harry yells as soon as he walks through the door the following Sunday after lunch.

"Calm down. We need to wait for Severus and Minerva and then we are starting."

"Alright. I'm excited. Are we doing any more practicing for the second task after Animagus practice?"

"If we have time and you have energy. I think you are very well prepared for the task itself, but it never hurts to expand your spell knowledge. You already know to use gillyweed so the breathing isn't a problem either. Why don't you calmly sit down and wait?"

Harry sits down but he's anything but calm. He's excited about learning how to transform. He knows it's hard, after pestering Sirius all week for information, and he might not transform that day but at least he's starting. He has researched the golden eagle in detail. Thankfully for Harry Minerva and Severus walk in only a few minutes later.

"Alright, Minerva is going to take the lead with the initial meditation you both will be doing. Once you move on to further steps I will be helping Harry while Minerva will be helping Severus. Don't be discouraged if you don't succeed immediately."

"Alright gentlemen, please sit down on the floor in a comfortable position. Close your eyes and relax your breathing and body. You are both occlumens, so that should be the same technique you use for it. Very nice, you are both fully relaxed. Now I want you to visualize your form. Picture it in front of you the way you saw it when you found out your form with the potion. Lift up a hand when you've pictured it." Both Severus and Harry quickly lift their hand. "Excellent, you are doing great. Now visualize yourself becoming your form. Visualize your arms becoming the wings, visualize your legs becoming the feet. Slowly watch yourself become your form. Once you have done that, I want you to visualize yourself transforming back to your human form, one body part at a time. When you have done that, open your eyes."

Minerva sits back next to Sirius and they wait while Harry and Severus do as instructed. However, the moment Harry has visualized himself as the golden eagle, he disappears and a golden eagle sits in his place. Minerva shoots out of her seat. "Alright Harry, that's alright. Severus, please don't be distracted and continue. Harry, I know you can still hear me. Start visualizing yourself transforming back. Simply continue with my instructions."

Minerva and Sirius share a worried glance, knowing that if Harry's bird instincts take over it will be harder to transform back. The initial transformation back to human form is always the hardest, and some wizards take days to do so. To their relief Harry transforms back ten minutes later, looking around in excitement mixed with confusion. Severus had finished his meditation and got to see Harry before he transformed back.

"I did it! How? I thought it took forever?"

"It depends on the wizard Harry. I succeeded on my second try, from what Sirius has told me it took him months and so did your dad. Some people are born with an affinity for Animagi, and for those people it's easier to transform. Apparently you have that affinity, which isn't strange since both your parents were Animagi."

"My mom was an Animagus?"

"She was a fox, but it wasn't well known. I'm not sure your dad knew either. She rarely ever transformed."

"I knew. I had helped her brew the potion. She didn't want it known," Severus says.

"So can I do that again?" Harry asks excitedly.

"No you may not," Sirius says sternly. "You should only transform once a day at most for the first month. Your body has to adjust and you will likely feel sore. You will also need to slowly get used to your bird instincts, and they might change you a little bit. Your vision might improve slightly or you might get slightly better hearing. I smell everything better since becoming an Animagus. All these things take time, so for the first month you may come here once a day to transform. You may not transform without Minerva or I present. I find out you transformed without either of us, and I will forbid you from transforming at all for a week, is that clear? It's dangerous to do so."

"Yes Sirius, I understand."

"Good. Severus, the same goes for you. I have no doubt you will succeed quickly, but even before then don't try more than once a day. Minerva will take you through the next step while Harry and I will practice some more wandless magic."

Harry and Sirius move to the other side of the living room to give Severus and Minerva some space to continue Animagus lessons. Sirius pulls Harry into a big hug. "I'm proud of you pup. Now we just need to come up with a nickname for you. I'll have to discuss it with Remus. Now let's work on wandless shields. Go ahead and try Protego."

With that, Harry and Sirius work on his shields wandlessly while Severus and Minerva start on transforming body part by body part. When it's time for dinner, a frustrated Severus has managed to form his wings but that's it and Harry can do all his shields wandlessly.

"Don't get frustrated Severus. Even being able to do certain body parts is impressive at this stage. I have no doubt you will fully transform quickly."

"I know Minerva, but it's frustrating nonetheless. I know I'll succeed, I'm just not a very patient man."

"Let's all head down to dinner, we need it after a hard lesson like that. I noticed you did your shields perfectly Harry, congratulations."

"Thank you professor. I can't hold them very long yet but I'm sure that will happen with practice."

"I can't do any wandless magic, so I think it's all wonderful."

"But you are such a strong witch?"

"Thank you Harry, but being strong does not mean you have the ability. It's why wandless magic isn't taught at Hogwarts. My magic has never been able to adapt to wandless, even though I can do nonverbal easily and just like you the Animagus transformation wasn't hard for me."

"I find it all interesting. It's like our magic has it's own personality just like we do."

"I suppose you can see it that way. Let's go eat, you look like you need it."

Harry smiles, knowing that his professor is right. He does feel a little tired after all that practicing, and he still has an evening filled with homework ahead of him. "Sirius, can I come back here after dinner? I have a lot of homework to do and I need some help on the Potions essay."

"Sure pup. Ask Alex if he wants to join you, I overheard him talking about some issues he had with DADA so we might be able to help him as well. I think he was counting on you being back in the room after dinner so he could get help."

"Alright I'll ask him. I've been helping him with all his classes pretty much every day. He's doing really well in almost all his classes but struggles with Transfiguration and DADA."

"Remus and I are both good in those classes, and you are better than either of us in DADA so he can get plenty of help in our quarters. I heard you've been spending a lot of time in the All-House Common Room?"

"Yes, pretty much anytime we do homework we're in there. I met some really nice people from Slytherin the other day, both sixth year girls. They don't like where most of their year mates are headed in their views of the Wizarding World, and they wanted me to know that if I ever need support for anything to let them know. They've been coming there almost every day, and seem to making friends in all houses. I'm just glad all four houses are now represented there, it's helping people get over their prejudices."

"That's really good Harry. That's why you wanted that room, and it appears to be working and all because you are just being yourself. Keep doing that pup, and you will make a difference."

"Thanks Sirius." Harry groans. "I almost just called you dad again. I really need to watch that."

Sirius pulls Harry into an alcove. "Harry, if you want to call me that, that's fine by me. I think James would be honored that we have gotten that close, it's what he wanted if something ever happened to me. I don't want you to hold back how you feel."

"But I don't want Remus and Severus to feel left out. I just see them more as uncles, I don't know why."

"As a baby you were closer to me as well. I think instinctively you formed a bond with me without realizing it, most likely because of the blood adoption. They won't be upset, and they'd be honored if they knew you considered them uncles. Nothing changes in your relationship with any of us. They'll still be there for you just like they are now. If you had not been emancipated you would have been adopted by me by now and I would be your dad, you know that. I also blood adopted you as a baby, so you have my blood in you. You are my son by blood and magic, even if legally you aren't. If you want to call me dad, I'd be honored."

Harry just hugs Sirius. He wants to call him dad, but he doesn't know what anyone will say. He vows to ask Remus and Severus when he gets the chance. "Let's go eat, I'm starving."

Sirius grins and ruffles his hair before they walk the rest of the way to the Great Hall. As soon as they walk into the Great Hall Harry looks for Alex and sits down with him. "Hey Alex. I'm going to my guardian's rooms after dinner to do homework. Do you want to come with and we can help you with anything you need?"

"Sure Harry, thanks. I need some help on my DADA work."

"I can help you and Sirius and Remus will be there to help as well."

"May I join you?" Viktor asks, sitting down across from Harry.

"If you are talking about now, yes. If you are talking about for homework after dinner, yes."

"Thank you. How were your lessons?"

"Good but exhausting. I hope I have enough energy to finish my homework."

"What did you work on?"

"I can't say, I'm sorry. One day I'll be able to tell you."

"Alright, I respect that. So we haven't gone flying in almost a week."

"I know. We need make time for that sometime this week, but between extra lessons and homework it's hard. The Second Task is in three weeks so we have to make sure we do some flying before then. It will help us both relax."

"Agreed. And I think Alex here needs some more practice and he could be halfway decent."

"I see him as a Chaser. Gryffindor will need a Chaser next year. You should try out Alex. I don't think any of the other teams are graduating any Chasers and you don't have the build for a Beater. What are you going to do Viktor? Ravenclaw already has a Seeker."

"Cho has said she'd rather be Chaser, and we need 1 Chaser next year so they've already agreed to give that spot to her and I'll fly Seeker. And I agree Alex should try out for Gryffindor Chaser."

"You guys think I'm good enough?"

"You are new on a broom, but I think with practice you will be. You already have good hand eye coordination, you had no problem throwing and catching the Quaffle."

"I consider that high praise coming from you. Let me know when you go out and I'll join you."

"You should talk to your father and see about getting your own broom. You'd do much better, the school brooms are incredibly outdated."

"I already did. He said he'd have one sent to me but it's not here yet."

"What did you get?"

"A Firebolt," Alex says with a grin. "Only the best, right?"

Harry and Viktor laugh. "We both fly one so it must be. I'm done eating, are you guys ready to head up?"

The other two nod and they make their way to Sirius' quarters. They've just pulled out their homework and are all sitting on the floor around the coffee table when Sirius, Remus and Severus walk in. "Sirius said you needed my help Harry?"

"Can you look over my essay? I feel like I'm missing something and not fully understanding it."

Severus reads Harry's essay. "This looks fine Harry. What part do you not understand?"

"Well, I understand what I've written but I still have this feeling like I'm missing something. But I'm not?"

"No. You've listed all the correct steps and ingredients for the Forgetfulness Potion, and why each ingredient is important and how it works with all the others. That's what I asked for, and that's what you've written. This essay is fine the way it is Harry."

"Alright. Thanks. I don't know why I was thinking that. Maybe it's because Hermione's essay is twice as long."

Severus groans, making Harry laugh. "She always writes way more than necessary. I actually take points if she goes off topic, she knows that. Don't compare yours to hers Harry, please."

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind."

"Do you need help with anything else?"

"Not really, but can you read over the rest of my homework? Only if you have time."

"Sure. I'm done with all my grading, so I have time to read them. Hand them over."

Harry hands Severus all his homework and starts on his last essay, DADA. He leans back against the couch and puts his feet up. Viktor scoots over and sits next to him, looking at his page. "That's very advanced Harry. You study that in fourth year?"

"Yes. You don't?"

"We just covered that this year. It's more about defense and we cover more of the offensive spells first."

"That doesn't make sense. How is that going to help if you can't defend yourself against those offensive spells?"

"Most of us practice them on our own. I don't understand the reasoning either. I'm glad I didn't transfer earlier because I'd have been behind in several classes."

"That's just strange. So since you've already done this, want to do my essay for me?"

Before Viktor can respond, Severus has cuffed Harry on the back of the head with a rolled up essay. "Do your own homework Harry."

"I was just kidding. Geez."

Harry turns back to his essay, which really isn't hard. When he finishes he puts it on the pile that Severus is reading and relaxes back against the couch. He leans towards Viktor who is working on his Charms essay. Alex is working with Remus on his DADA homework. He relishes in the normality of the evening and smiles. "That's not right," he says to Viktor.

"What isn't right?"

"This. I wrote an essay on that a few weeks ago and made the same mistake. It's the other way around."

"You're sure?"

"Yes."

An hour later Viktor finishes his essay and sees Harry asleep against his side. He puts an arm around him and waves his wand to pack his things back into his bag. Remus and Alex have just finished their discussion and Alex is writing his essay while Remus walks over and sits down on the armrest of Sirius' chair. "He looks comfortable Viktor."

"Yes he does. I'd hate to wake him up so he can go to bed. He was tired at dinner so it was only a matter of time."

Severus puts all of Harry's essays in his bookbag and stands up. "Viktor, can you tell him at breakfast that all his essays are fine?"

"Yes sir."

Severus carefully lifts Harry up. "I'm going to put him to bed. I'll be back."

Severus walks out of the room with Harry in his arms and proceeds to tuck him into bed. When he walks back into the living room, Viktor and Alex are packing their things. "I didn't mean you had to leave."

"It's alright sir, it's almost curfew anyway," Alex says with a smile.

When the two boys have left, Severus sits back down on the couch. "You don't think Harry will be embarrassed that I carried him to bed in front of his friends, right?"

"He probably will be, but he'll get over it quickly. It was sweet, even though I think Viktor wouldn't have minded having him close a little longer," Sirius replies.

"Harry is growing up. Can we go back to this summer when he didn't care about dating yet?" Remus asks.

"I wish. Part of the reason I put him to bed so quickly is because he was so close to Viktor."

They all get back to what they were doing. An hour later a sleepy looking Harry walks into the living room. "How did I end up in bed?"

"You fell asleep so I put you to bed. I figured it would be more comfortable. What are you doing awake?"

"I had a nightmare. I know it's late but may I join you out here for a bit?"

Severus puts his arm on the back of the couch and Harry takes the invitation for what it is and sits down on the couch before Severus puts his arm around him. It doesn't take long for Harry to fall back asleep, but this time Severus doesn't take him back to bed immediately. "I want to make sure he doesn't have another nightmare," he says in explanation.

"Sure Severus. If you say so," Sirius says with a smile.

"I think he looks cute asleep like that," Remus says, looking up from his book.

"There's something I want to mention. Harry has expressed that he keeps wanting to call me dad but he's holding back because he's afraid to offend the two of you. He said he sees you as uncles. I told him if it wasn't for the emancipation he'd legally be my son, especially since he's my son by blood and magic."

"I wouldn't be offended. I'm happy he sees me as an uncle, which is what I was always intended to be in his life. And it wouldn't change anything in how I treat him," Remus says

"I concur," Severus says softly. "I don't think it will change anything."

"Alright. I have a feeling he'll bring it up to you sometime."

The next week Harry practices his Animagus form every day. He's sure most days, as his muscles are getting used to the changes, but by the end of the week he is transforming without much problem. Severus has also finally succeeded at a full transformation, and they have planned to use the Sunday lessons to learn how to fly.

"Alright gentlemen. Since none of us have Animagus forms that can fly, it is something you'll have to teach yourself. Trust your instincts. I know we've been harping on you not to let your form instincts take over, and you shouldn't, but you do need to trust them. We will also have to trust you not to go out of sight and to be careful. This goes for both of you, but if you fly out of sight or do any dangerous stunts especially this first time you will have to answer to me once you transform back, understood?" Minerva asks sternly, giving them both pointed looks.

"Yes ma'am."

"Alright. The only place on the grounds that the headmaster does not have an easy view of is on the side of the lake, in between the trees. Please cast disillusionment charms on yourself and let's head that way."

When they get to the little clearing between the trees Harry and Severus immediately transform, eager to fly. They both hop onto a low hanging branch, before jumping off and attempting to fly. They both almost immediately succeed.

Initially they stay low to the ground but slowly they go higher and higher and further away. They share a look and start chasing one another, Harry easily winning each time as a golden eagle is much faster than a raven. However, the intelligence of the raven outsmarts Harry several times and they continue. When Minerva whistles for them to come back down they both do so with reluctance. "Transform back gentlemen. That is enough for today."

Once transformed back Harry glares at her. "We weren't in the air very long, I don't see why we had to stop! It was so much fun!"

"I concur Minerva. We would have been fine."

"You might think so now, but all the research suggests to slowly build up your flying or you'll feel sore the next day. You'll just have to trust and obey me in this. Now stop glaring at me, both of you. You agreed to allow me to tutor you in becoming an Animagus so you will just have to live with it. And I will know if you go out flying again, and you do not want to find out the consequences. Severus, just because you're an adult does not mean you're too old for detention. Let's head back to the castle before anyone notices us missing. I will disillusion myself and Severus should as well. Sirius, Remus and Harry you should walk back calmly so that you have an excuse since I have no doubt the headmaster has noticed you aren't in the castle. This way you can say you've just been on an afternoon walk. Harry, I want a six foot essay on becoming an Animagus from start to finish. Please include personal experience. It's a Seventh Year essay, but it'll be easier for you to write now when it's still fresh in your mind. I will record it and you won't have to do it in Seventh Year. You'll thank me then when you're busy studying for your NEWTS."

"When is it due?"

"When you can finish it but let's say Easter holidays. That gives you a month and a half. I don't want it to interfere with your other work, I'm just doing this for your benefit."

"Alright, I suppose that makes sense and that's enough time to work on it."

Harry, Remus and Sirius calmly walk back to the castle, where they see the headmaster looking out a window. They feel his eyes on them the whole time and make sure to talk about nothing important. They haven't heard from Lord Peterson or Madame Bones yet, and have no idea how long the investigation will take, so for now they will be careful.

The morning of the Second Task Harry is pacing his room. He hasn't seen Dudley since the night before when he was taken from the Common Room by Professor McGonnagal along with Hermione. He has a feeling it's because of the task, but it worries him. Why they would pick Dudley for him he doesn't understand, but he has a feeling it's because they can't use professors since they'll be needed to supervise and Dudley is family.

"Calm down Harry," Alex says. "You will be alright. You've said yourself you are as prepared as you can be. There will be a lot of people there should something go wrong."

"I know, I just can't help but worry. I need to get going, I have to be down there in a few minutes."

When Harry gets to the docks by the lake he sees Viktor, Cedric and Fleur already there. "Ahh Harry, good of you to join us. Now you've all heard the clue by now so you know what to do. When the horn blows you may jump in. Once you get back Madame Pomfrey will be here with blankets and any medical aid you might need. Are there any questions?" Dumbledore asks.

They all shake their heads. "I wish I knew who or what I'd have to rescue," Cedric says softly once the Headmaster leaves.

"Hermione," Harry says matter of fact. "She's been missing along with Dudley since last night when Professor McGonnagal came and got her."

"I think for me it's my brother. He came for the First Task and he was planning to come for this one but I haven't seen him yet," Viktor says.

"For me it's my sister. My parents are here and she'd be with them but she's not and I know she arrived with them yesterday afternoon."

"So we all have people to save. Wonderful. I really hope the ending of the clue is not true," Harry says with a glare.

They watch as the stands fill with spectators, and Harry gets a hug from Sirius and Remus when they arrive. He had given Severus a hug the night before, knowing he wouldn't be able to that day. Filius comes over and wishes both Harry and Viktor good luck as their Head of House. Sooner than Harry would like they are told to take their place.

Harry hears the horn and quickly shoves the gillyweed in his mouth. He ignores the others and jumps into the water, almost climbing back out at the cold. He casts a wordless and wandless warming charm on himself and it makes it much more tolerable. He wonders whose bright idea it was to have a Task in the lake during the winter. As soon as the gillyweed starts working he dives under and starts swimming. He casts a quick point me spell for Dudley to know he's swimming in the right direction. He doesn't encounter anything for a while, when suddenly there are Grindylows right in front of him. He casts a quick Lumos Maxima and they scatter in the opposite direction.

After what feels like a long time Harry sees a light in the distance and swims towards it. He sees some merpeople but they leave him alone, for which he is grateful. He sees four people suspended by ropes. He hesitates, wanting to rescue Hermione as well, but knowing that she's for Cedric to save and trusting that Cedric will make it there on time. He sees Viktor coming in the distance and quickly cuts the rope for Dudley and starts swimming upwards with him. The Merpeople leave him alone, and he has a feeling they have just been tasked with making sure everyone takes the right person.

When he almost gets to the top, he is once again attacked by Grindylows. The Lumos Maxima works again on most of them, but he has to stupefy a few Grindylows. Unfortunately, one of the Grindylows manages to cut his leg and Harry is starting to bleed profusely. He feels himself getting weaker. He starts swimming hard, wanting to get above water and back to the dock before he loses consciousness.

He makes it to the top and hears the cheering when he appears close to the docks with Dudley. He vaguely notices he's the first one back and hears Dudley sputtering next to him. He remembers grabbing the dock before he loses all consciousness.

"He'll be fine, right?"

"Yes Sirius, he'll be fine. Madame Pomfrey gave him several blood replenishers and has fixed the cut on his leg. He'll be fine once he regains consciousness."

"Sirius?" Harry asks softly, barely aware of his surroundings.

"I'm here Harry. How are you feeling?"

"I'm sore," Harry says, slowly opening his eyes. He sees Remus, Dudley, Viktor, Cedric and Hermione by his bed.

"You'll be sore for a while. You lost a lot of blood, that Grindylow hit a major vein in your leg. You'll be staying in my quarters for the next few days to recover.

"How did the task end?"

"You came in first, Viktor second, Cedric third and Fleur last. She didn't get to her sister at all, she got lost. Her sister was brought to safety by the Merpeople. Viktor and Cedric made it back right after you."

"Everyone else alright?"

"Yes, everyone is fine. Cedric also got caught by the Grindylows but his cut wasn't as severe and he was healed quickly."

"Okay. When can I leave here?"

"As soon as Madame Pomfrey releases you, which she said she'd do after you woke up. Keep in mind you are going straight to our rooms and taking it easy. You may sit on the couch or your bed but those are your only options."

"Ahh Mr. Potter I see that you are awake. Let's do a quick diagnostic and then you should be alright to leave. Your guardians have assured me they will make sure you take it easy."

Harry waits for the diagnostic to finish, and takes another blood replenisher. "You should be fine with plenty of rest. If you feel up to it you may attend classes Monday, but I want you to take it easy for the remainder of today and tomorrow."

"Thank you Madame Pomfrey, we will make sure he takes it easy," Sirius says before lifting Harry off the bed. "You all may visit him tomorrow after lunch."

When Sirius walks into their rooms with Harry Severus is already there, pacing. "There you are! I thought you were never going to get here! What did Madame Pomfrey say?"

Sirius puts Harry on the couch and Severus sits next to him, pulling him close. "He has to take it easy, which means he can sit on the couch or his bed but that's it. His friends have been told they can visit after lunch tomorrow. He's had several blood replenisher but he should be fine apart from lots of rest. If he does that he may return to class Monday."

"Good. I will stay here to keep you company Harry, I'm sure Sirius and Remus will as well. I know bedrest is boring but you need it. And well done on the task, I'm proud of you."

Harry smiles and leans into Severus' arms. He doesn't want to admit it but he's still really tired. He closes his eyes, and soon he's asleep.

AN: I need nicknames for the Animagus forms of Harry and Severus! What do you guys think they should be called? If I pick your name I will give you credit for it.


	40. Chapter 40

AN: Goodness! I can't believe all the suggestions I received so quickly after posting my request for nicknames! Lots of good suggestions, and it was actually hard deciding on something. Thanks to daithi4377 for the suggestion for Severus, and thanks to Mas1581 for the suggestion for Harry. It honestly was a really hard decision to make, and several other suggested names will be used while Remus and Sirius try to decide on a name. All the reviews made me want to write this next chapter quickly so as to not keep you waiting, so here it is! I hope you like it.

Chapter 40

"I don't understand why I can't go out into the common room."

"Because you've been told to stay in bed or on this couch. Now stop whining, it's unbecoming," Severus says with a scowl. He wonders where Sirius and Remus have run off to, but really hopes they'll be back soon. Harry is getting restless, just like they expected he would.

Harry crosses his arms and glares at Severus, who is very thankful when Sirius and Remus come back in. "I see things are going wonderful here. Harry, Severus, we have news for you. We have been talking and have decided on your Animagus names," Sirius says with a smile, tickling Harry in an attempt to get him to smile. When he succeeds he continues talking. "Harry, for you we first thought of Aquila. It's latin for Eagle. Then we thought of Talon. Both of those would work well, until Remus came up with the name we finally picked which is Lightning. The reason for that name is both because of your scar which you also have as an Animagus, and because you are lightning fast, both as an Animagus and on a broom. We felt it fit you well. What do you think?"

"I think I like it. I like all those options, but I see why you picked Lightning. You all have names that represent our form in some way, so it's fitting. What did you pick for Severus?"

"He wasn't quite as hard. As a Raven, we first thought of Corpus, which is latin for Raven. Then we decided it reminded us a little bit too much of corps, and decided against it. Then we thought of Midnight because he's black as a Raven and he always wears black. We ended up going with one of Severus' best skills, and that's his ability to hide and sneak around without getting caught, his stealth. We decided on the name Shadow, both because of the black and because he hides in the shadows so to speak."

"I like it. I was afraid you'd pick something awful," Severus says, looking relieved.

"I'm glad you both like it. We also wanted to pick names that will allow us to discuss your Animagus forms without anyone knowing who or what we're talking about. That is also why we decided against Aquila and Corpus, because it'd be too easy to guess we are talking about an Animagus form or animal that is of some importance."

"You've really thought this out," Severus says, looking impressed.

"It took us forever to decide on the Marauder nicknames. It's not as easy as it looks. We've had several weeks to think about yours, and we had both come up with several and just needed to narrow it down."

"So can I go somewhere else now? I feel fine!"

"_Harry James_ you ask one more time and I will stick you to your bed for the rest of the day and I will tell your friends not to come after lunch. I'm sure you have homework to work on if you feel fine," Severus scolds.

"Pup, why don't you get Ella in here and she can keep you company?"

Harry just glares at his guardians. "I hate being stuck inside like this. I suppose I can do homework. I got all my work done, but I can read ahead. It's just boring."

"If Madame Pomfrey hadn't told you not to exert your magic today I would suggest doing a lesson or starting on Parselmagic, but that will have to wait. Just don't take your frustration out on us, we know how hard this is."

"I'm sorry, I know I'm being a brat. I'll just read until lunch. Can I at least go down to the Great Hall for dinner with my friends?"

"If you feel alright after the visit with your friends, yes you may. It's only two more hours until lunch and your friends will be here after that. I'll do my grading in here so you're not by yourself," Sirius says.

"I'll stay here as well. You may read for your classes or you can read up on the spells we have listed for you to learn this term in your extra lessons. We've made the list based on what would be useful in a duel, but also what we think you might need in the Third Task. You won't find out what the Third Task is until after Easter break, but it won't hurt to learn a variety of things," Severus says.

"I'll do that if someone gets the list and the books with information from the library for me."

Dobby is summoned and soon Harry is surrounded by books. He doesn't realize how fast time has gone until Dobby pops in with his lunch. He looks up to see that Sirius, Remus and Severus have already gone to the Great Hall to have lunch.

"Harry! I'm so glad you're alright!" Hermione says as soon as she walks in, before giving him a big hug. Everyone takes their turns greeting Harry, before sitting down all over the living room. When Sirius and Remus walk in, they smile at seeing Harry surrounded by friends. "Keep in mind that he has to take it easy and he's not allowed to use magic or move from that couch."

"Yes Professor Black," Viktor says with a smile. "We'll make sure he takes it easy."

Sirius and Remus walk into the study without fully closing the door. Harry turns to his friends and smiles. "I'm happy you guys came, I've been so bored!"

"You scared us Harry. When Professor Black reached into the water to grab you before you went completely under we were all worried something had happened. When you were lifted out and we saw how pale you were and how much you were bleeding we feared the worst. If you had been a muggle you probably would have died before you could have gotten healed," Alex says.

"I'm just glad I made it to the dock. I was worried I wouldn't be able to and you guys wouldn't know something was wrong until it was too late. But now I'm recovered and I want to do something fun but I'm not allowed."

"That's too bad. You'll sit here and enjoy our company. I was worried when I got back and you weren't on the dock. I had seen you swim away ahead of me so I knew you should have been back already."

"I just don't like being idle. So were there any good parties last night?"

Everyone nods. "Gryffindor had a big party, just for the heck of it," Dudley says with a grin.

"Ravenclaw had a party as well," Viktor says.

"So did Hufflepuff. I'm sorry you missed all the parties Harry," Cedric says. "We'll have to have another one when you're recovered."

"I always seem to miss the good parties. I like the idea of having another one."

"Then it shall be arranged," Cedric grins. "I don't think anyone will mind. Fred, George, do you guys want to be in charge? Try to find a way to include everyone."

"On it!" Fred and George say in unison.

"So Harry, we need your help with this prank we're planning," Fred says softly.

Harry casts a muffling charm and anti-eavesdropping spells around them before answering. "You must be mad if you think I'll help you. I'm doing my best to stay out of trouble."

"You won't need to break any rules, promise."

"Tell me what you have planned and I'll let you know if I'll help."

Fred and George look at Cedric before looking back at Harry. "We will when we don't have a Head Boy or Prefect listening in."

"You three really shouldn't be planning any pranks," Cedric says.

"Even Professor Black thinks pranks are fun as long as they don't harm anyone," Fred says.

"And our pranks don't harm anyone. They are for entertainment," George ads.

"Normally I would agree, but as Head Boy I can't this time. So Harry, what's with all these books."

Harry explains about what he's reading, and the others looks suitably impressed. "How often do you have extra lessons?" Cedric asks, one of the few in the room who doesn't know about them yet.

"Four times a week. Sunday afternoons, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings. I actually really enjoy them. One night we do Arithmancy so that I can get caught up without taking the class. The other times we do Potions, Defense or anything I might need to know about the Wizarding World and being a Lord. I learn so many things I otherwise wouldn't learn. Please keep that between us though, not everyone needs to know the extend of my studies."

"I won't say anything. I'm impressed by your dedication. All that on top of the Tournament has to be exhausting."

"It's not too bad. There are times where I wish I had more free time, but if I truly need it my guardians cancel extra lessons. And like today I get to hang out with you guys since I'm supposed to take it easy."

"You're happier than you have been Harry, it's been good to see. Even though you get into trouble regularly, you smile more and you are more confident," Hermione says with a smile. "I still remember during the summer when Sirius came and got you from my house and the look on your face when you knew you were in trouble. You hated disappointing him, I could tell and you looked like anyone else I know when they get in trouble. Before you wouldn't care about what other people thought when you broke the rules."

"What did you do over the summer?" Viktor asks.

"I was grounded but went to Hermione's anyway. It was the first time I'd seen Sirius truly angry at me. I felt awful, but at the same time the feeling that he had cared enough to come looking for me was good. I got in massive trouble over it, but I didn't mind too much as I spent a lot of time with my guardians the rest of the summer. When I ran away from my relatives before Third year nobody came looking for me, and they left me alone in Diagon Alley for several weeks before school started without anyone caring how I was doing as long as I didn't leave Diagon. The Minister was there to make sure I was alive when I first go to the Leaky Cauldron but that was it. Sirius actually made an effort to look for me the moment he realized I was missing."

Harry hasn't noticed that Sirius has walking in behind him and suddenly he's hugged from behind. "Of course I'd come looking for you! Don't you ever believe otherwise."

"I know that now Sirius. How long have you been standing there?"

"Not long, I was just walking through to get tea and biscuits from the kitchen. I'm assuming everyone will want some?"

"That would be wonderful Professor Black," Hermione says with a smile.

"Why don't you all call me Sirius when in these rooms. But only these rooms. In here I'm Harry's guardian, not your professor. If everyone wants tea I'll have Dobby get us some since we'll need a lot of it. And with hungry teenagers I'm not sure we have enough biscuits in the kitchen."

It doesn't take long for Sirius to return, following by Dobby who is floating two large trays of tea and biscuits. "I'll leave you all be, but here is tea and biscuits. If you need more, call for Dobby."

"Thank you Sirius," Harry smiles.

Everyone gets tea and biscuits, and soon conversation turns to everything from their classes, to Quidditch, to predictions for the Third task. When the topic of Easter break comes up, Harry calls for Sirius. "Hey Sirius, do we have plans for Easter break?"

"Not yet. Do you have something in mind?"

"Not yet, just checking."

"Let me know if there's anything you want and we'll see what we can do."

"I'm going back to Bulgaria for the week," Viktor says. "My parents want me home since I didn't get to go home for Christmas. You're welcome to come visit."

"I'll talk to my guardians and see what they want. I know if I said I wanted to visit you they'd work it in somehow, but I got the feeling they had ideas on what they wanted to do."

"I'm going home," Hermione says. "the whole family is coming to our house for Easter and I haven't seen some of them in a long time."

Everyone else appears to be going home as well, so Harry decides that no matter what, they'll be going to Black Manor. He has a feeling that once they find out what the Third task will be after the holidays, he won't have much time to relax anymore.

Just before Harry is about to leave for dinner, Lord Peterson comes through the floo. "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't realize you'd be this busy. I can come back later."

"It's alright, we were just heading down for dinner but I can stay up here. I have a feeling it would make Sirius feel better anyway. I hope you don't mind if I order dinner?"

"No that's fine. Is Sirius still here?"

"I'll see you guys later," Harry says to his friends. "Hopefully for breakfast tomorrow."

His friends nod before leaving to head to dinner, and Harry walks into the study to let Sirius and Remus know Lord Peterson is there. "Are you guys eating up here?"

"Yes, we'll stay here. We have to eat two meals a day in the Great Hall and we already ate breakfast and lunch there so we can eat dinner up here. You ordering something?"

"Yes. Can one of you let Severus know? I'll order enough in case he wants to eat here. Lord Peterson, are you eating?"

"I'd love to Harry. This might take a while."

Harry nods and calls for Dobby, ordering dinner for five. He walks into the kitchen and enlarges the table before conjuring another chair and quickly sets it for five. Severus walks in and gives him a hug. "I'm glad to see you up and about Harry."

"I'm glad to finally be off that couch. I'm assuming you're staying here for dinner?"

"I am. I heard Lord Peterson is here, so hopefully it's good news."

"It is," Lord Peterson says, walking into the kitchen. "This looks great Harry."

"I can't take credit for the food. All I did was enlarge the table and add a chair. The food is all house elf. I'm actually quite hungry, even though I haven't done a thing today."

"Well let's sit down and start," Sirius says, walking into the kitchen behind Remus. "And your body has been rapidly recovering. That takes energy which is why you can't do magic when recovering from something major."

Harry doesn't respond, instead he starts eating. When they are mostly done, they all turn to Lord Peterson.

"Let's take this to the living room where we are more comfortable."

Once they are all seated he starts talking. "I have finished everything for a trial against the headmaster. I have spoken to Amelia Bones, and she agrees that for now we should hold back most of the evidence and give just enough to get him removed as Headmaster and Supreme Mugwump. She doesn't want a full on trial until he does more things, especially against others. We think he will when pushed into a corner, and being removed as Headmaster and Supreme Mugwump will definitely do that. We don't want to play all our cards now and risk not getting him sent to Azkaban. If he's removed as Headmaster and Supreme Mugwump, it will also cause a lot of information he doesn't want known to be released to the public, which will lower his standing in the Wizarding World. How do you feel about that?"

Everyone looks at Harry, knowing this is his decision to make. Also, while they can advice him, the ultimate decision has to be made by Harry. "I trust your opinion. I want it to be a sure thing when we do go to full trial to get him convicted, so if you feel that we need more to succeed let's way. I do want him removed as Headmaster at the very least. When will this happen?"

"Amelia has managed to get a trial for Friday. You will have to be there in case the Wizengamot wants you to testify. This trial is before the full Wizengamot, and it will just be to remove him as Headmaster and Supreme Mugwump. We are not charging him with anything, just having him declared incompetent for those positions. We will ask for evaluation and treatment at St. Mungo's as well to make it sound more believable that we are doing it because we're concerned. We don't want it to seem like we are accusing him of anything, more like we are concerned for his well being and the wellbeing of the students. Does that make sense?"

"It does. When will he find out about it?"

"He won't until Friday. All the members of the Wizengamot will be told is that there's a special meeting. This is not unusual and is usually done to prevent the Wizengamot from discussing a sensitive case beforehand. Nobody will think it's odd or think anything of it. Sirius, Remus and Severus, you all will be there as members or proxy members. Harry, I want you to go with Sirius and Remus under the excuse that they want you to attend a meeting to learn about the Wizengamot and its workings. It is not unusual for an underage Lord to attend the occasional meeting even if they can't say anything or vote, simply so they can learn for when they become of age."

"Alright, I can do that. I'm assuming it won't be an issue that I'll be missing classes?"

"No, it won't be. As three of your professors will have to be at the Ministry along with the Headmaster, Professor McGonnagal will have to be Headmistress for the day which means her classes will most likely be cancelled as well. Just a warning, should this go through, Remus you will likely be appointed Head of Gryffindor immediately as Professor McGonnagal will become Headmistress. She will continue teaching until a new Transfiguration professor is found but she can't do that along with Head of Gryffindor. She will also have to assign a Deputy Headmaster within the first 24 hours, and it's customary that while she's still teaching, all disciplinary matters will defer to the Deputy Headmaster to get some pressure off the new Headmistress while she does two full time jobs. You should keep in mind that she will likely ask one of you for the Deputy Headmaster job, unless she asks Filius. The reason I say that is because she knows the current situation and knows it's the smart thing to do. Just think what you want to do so that when she asks you know what to say. I want to point out that Remus will be more busy as Head of Gryffindor already, and you don't want to forget about Harry. I don't think it's a good idea for any of you to accept Deputy Headmaster, especially with the Tournament. You are all busy, and everyone will be more busy with the changes in staff. Also, strategically it would be good for Filius to be Deputy Headmaster. He is very fair to all houses, he is approachable for all students, and he is intelligent and a strong wizard. To have him in a position of more power will end up being beneficial to everyone."

"I would not want to be Deputy Headmaster. I don't have time for the extra duties and half the students would never come to me if needed," Severus says.

"I don't think I'd be good either. If Remus becomes Head of Gryffindor, I suggest he makes the suggestion that I become Deputy Head of Gryffindor. That allows me into the Head of House meetings, which discuss everything important at Hogwarts and with me being able to share duties with Remus neither of us will become overwhelmed with extra work. I agree with your reasoning that Filius would be best for the position."

"I don't want to lose all of you to extra duties," Harry says softly.

"You won't Harry, that's why we're discussing it now. Head of House for Remus will be the only change, and Dumbledore out of the picture for the most part. I promise if you feel that we don't have enough time for you we will give up some of our duties. I would stop teaching altogether if it made you happy Harry, I promise." Sirius says. "You are the most important person in my life right now, and I don't want you to ever doubt that."

"Thanks dad," Harry smiles. Harry has decided to call Sirius that, it just feels right, especially since by blood and magic Sirius really is his dad.

Lord Peterson just smiles at the interaction. "I will let you guys enjoy your evening. I will see you at the Wizengamot meeting on Friday morning. You will get the official summons on Thursday at the latest. Pretend to be surprised please."

"Thank you Lord Peterson. I appreciate all the hard work you're putting in," Harry says with a smile. "I have to say I like being able to make my own legal decisions myself, even though I appreciate all of your input. I feel like I have control over what happens in my life."

"That is the point of being emancipated. It's not to put you alone in this world, that's why you have guardians so you're not alone. It's to give you control over all legal and financial aspects of your life."

"I like it. Thank you Lord Peterson. We'll see you on Friday."

When Lord Peterson leaves Harry sits back down on the couch. "Remus, Severus, do you mind that I call Sirius dad?"

"No Harry. By blood and magic, and therefore by every way that truly matters, he is your father just like James was," Remus says.

"I agree with that. You need to do what you feel comfortable with," Severus says with a smile.

"Thanks. Do I have to stay here tonight?" 

"Yes. You may go to breakfast in the Great Hall tomorrow but for tonight I want you to stay here and have a good night's sleep," Sirius says.

"Alright. I would argue it but I know it won't get me anywhere."

"You're learning that I'm overprotective," Sirius smirks. "Well done. Now how about we play some games or something, just to keep the evening interesting?"

Soon they are playing card games, and Harry is enjoying the time spent together. He knows this coming Friday will be crucial. If Dumbledore gets removed as Headmaster it will change a lot, and he is both excited and scared for the change. He does know that Sirius is honest when he says that he'd quit his job if he felt Harry needed him more.

It is barely curfew when Sirius sends Harry to bed. Harry, though tired, grumbles and complains a little more out of habit than anything else. Sirius, knowing that Harry really is ready for bed, simply picks him up and carries him to the bathroom, where he stands him in front of the sink. "Brush your teeth."

Harry gives Sirius a look but obeys and brushes his teeth. The second he's done, Sirius picks him up again and carries him to his bed, tucking him in. "Sirius! I'm not a little kid!"

"No, but you've been recovering so I think you deserve a little spoiling. Can't have you tire yourself out by walking, now can we?" Sirius says teasingly.

Harry laughs, knowing Sirius is joking around. "I suppose you have a point. I am tired, and I want you to allow me to go to classes in the morning."

"Good. Goodnight Harry, I love you."

"Love you too dad."

"Are you nervous Harry?"

"Of course I'm nervous. This is huge. I'm also really excited to see a formal Wizengamot meeting. I've been studying the workings of the Wizengamot so much that it'll be nice to see it actually play out in front of me."

"Well it's time for us to apparate there. Let's walk down. Severus will see us there. I see you are wearing your best formal robes, which is perfect."

Harry nods and follows Sirius out the door, Remus behind them. Sirius, who is wearing his Wizengamot purple robes over his formal robes, puts his arm around Harry in a comforting manner. Students stop to look at them walk down the halls and out the castle, recognizing the robes and realizing why half their classes are cancelled.

The moment they walk into the Ministry reporters start taking pictures of the three of them. Apparently the news of a special meeting has leaked and they are all hoping the three of them would show up. Severus walks in right behind them, which is coincidence but also means he's in all the pictures and helps get them through the crowds. When they arrive in the meeting hall, they head to their seats. Harry is seated in the Gryffindor seat, which is in between the Black seat and the Potter seat so he's seated between Sirius and Remus. The Peverell seat is empty, as that's the proxy Severus holds while Severus sits in the Prince seat in the row behind them.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Wizengamot, I hereby call this meeting of the Wizengamot open," Amelia Bones starts. "The reason for this meeting is concerns raised regarding Albus Dumbledore's competence as Headmaster of Hogwarts and Supreme Mugwump of the wizengamot. As head of the DMLE I will be conducting this meeting as opposed to Albus, as he is unable to do so in this situation. I have pensieve memories ready for you to view and ask that you refrain from commenting until the end of the viewing."

Amelia starts the memories. She has included the ones that talk about Harry's entry into the Tournament, what happened afterwards and Albus' admission that he knew more and feels it's best for Harry to compete. Harry can hear the gasps of shock around him. Next the story shifts to Harry's discovery that Albus should have been teaching him about the Wizarding World and that Harry was unaware of his heritage. Withholding someone's heritage is a huge deal in the Wizarding World, and Harry look around to see everyone in shock. When the memories stop, everyone starts talking at the same time until Amelia calls for order.

"As you've all seen, Albus Dumbledore does not have the best interest of the Wizarding World or the students of Hogwarts at heart. To keep the heritage from a four time Lord is a major crime in the Wizarding World. To think it is a good idea for a fourteen year to participate in a dangerous Tournament is not behavior we expect from the Headmaster of Hogwarts. The school all our children attend. The question today is, should Albus remain as Headmaster and Supreme Mugwump, or should he be dismissed from both and referred to St. Mungo's for treatment? The choice is your. Lord Potter-Black is with us today, so if you have any questions, please raise your wand hand and we will try to get everything answered."

"Lord Potter-Black, why is this just now being brought to the attention of the Wizengamot?" a lady towards the back asks.

Lord Peterson stands up from the visitor seats to answer. "I can answer that as Lord Potter-Black's solicitor. I advised him to keep quiet for the time being, as it might have been an isolated incident. After discovering that it wasn't, we felt it necessary to alert the Wizengamot as we were concerned for the headmaster's sanity."

"Lord Potter-Black, are you aware of your heritage now?" A man in the front asks. Harry decides to learn which seats are where next chance he gets so he knows who these people are.

Harry stands up to answer. "Yes sir, I am. My godfather Sirius Black and honorary uncle Remus Lupin have been excellent in teaching me everything I need to know. If it wasn't for them, I'd still be ignorant of everything I need to know."

"Any further questions?" Amelia asks. When nobody raises their hand, she tries to contain her smile, knowing that everyone has made up their mind already. "Very well. Let's put this to a vote. Everyone in favor of removing Albus Dumbledore as Headmaster of Hogwarts and Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamot, please raise your wand hand and say aye."

Looking around, practically every member of the Wizengamot raises their hand. Amelia asks for those opposed, and only a handful raise their hands.

"This isn't right!" Albus says loudly. He never expected any of them to turn against him. "I'm not insane! I'm the best Headmaster Hogwarts has ever seen!"

"Albus Dumbledore, you have been removed as Headmaster of Hogwarts and Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamot. We recommend you get treatment at St. Mungo's. As of this moment, Minerva McGonnagal is Headmistress of Hogwarts and she has 24 hours to find a Deputy Headmaster. A letter has automatically been sent to her. We will appoint a new Supreme Mugwump at our next regular meeting. Please submit your nominations before then. Meeting adjourned."

Harry stands up and hugs Sirius and Remus. They all quickly make their way out, but the press who had attended the meeting isn't letting him leave easily. It takes Lord Peterson, Sirius, Remus and Severus to get them all out of the Ministry in one piece and they quickly apparate back to Hogwarts before making their way up to see Minerva. They know she'll call a meeting anyway.

"Thank you for stopping in gentlemen. First, Remus, will you take over as Head of Gryffindor with Sirius as your Deputy Head?"

"Absolutely Minerva," Remus says with a smile. Sirius nods in agreement as well.

"Severus, will you be Deputy Headmaster?"

"I'm sorry Minerva but I have to decline. I am far too busy to do an adequate job and you need someone all the students can approach. Too many students still fear me. Might I suggest Filius?"

"He was my next choice. Thank you for being honest. Harry, well done. This ultimately is for the best. It will be announced at dinner this evening as lunch has already passed. I will immediately begin the search for a substitute Transfiguration professor."

"Might I make a suggestion?" Remus asks. "I would love to teach Transfiguration. If you can find a DADA professor I would not mind switching subjects."

"Thank you Remus. You were always excellent in Transfiguration and a DADA teacher is easier to find. I actually have someone in mind for DADA since you are willing to switch. I'm assuming you all remember Kingsley Shacklebolt?"

"Absolutely, he's a great Auror. You think he'd give up being an Auror to teach?"

"He expressed the willingness earlier this year to both Albus and I, should the need arise. I will approach him. I will call a Head of House meeting this evening after dinner after I secure a new Deputy Headmaster. Thank you gentlemen."

They all walk back to the teacher's wing where Minerva takes Filius to the side. When they see Filius nod they know he's accepted the position. In their quarters Harry falls down on the couch with a smile. "I'm glad that's over."

"Agreed. It will be interesting to see the student reactions at dinner this evening. You will be asked questions Harry, but just pretend you had no idea until you got there."

"I will. How long until dinner?"

"About an hour. I want you to stay here so you can avoid questions from your friends before Minerva explains everything to the school. Do you have any homework?"

"I do, but can we work on some spells instead?"

"You know the rules Harry. Schoolwork comes first. Get some homework done and we can work on spells longer on Sunday because you won't have homework to do."

"Ahh please dad? I just want to do something more relaxing than homework after today."

Sirius smiles. "I know what you're trying to do, and I have to admit it's working. We'll work on Everte Statum. It will throw a target backwards. Let's do it with wand and verbally first and go from there. The wand movement is widdershins swish with stab through. Emphasis on 'ver' in Everte."

Harry grins, and from the corner of his eyes he can see Remus, Severus and Lord Peterson barely containing their amusement. He pulls out his wand and starts practicing. He first conjures a practice dummy to practice on before attempting to cast the spell. While Harry starts practicing Sirius turns to the others. "Don't even say it."

"We weren't going to. It's obvious he has you wrapped around his finger," Severus grins.

"No he does not," Sirius says indignantly.

"Yes he does. He called you dad and you immediately went back on the rules for him simply because he asked."

"Fine. It does something to me. It's only an hour."

"uhuh, sure. Lord Peterson, thank you for your help today."

"You're welcome Remus. Look at Harry, he's already doing it wandless."

Remus, Sirius and Severus smile over to where Harry is practicing. "He picks up new spells fairly quickly. Once he's learned them we do it wandless and after that nonverbal. Once he's gotten that right we work on strength and varying it. You should see the list of spells he's learned so far this year, it's pretty impressive. Half the spells aren't taught at Hogwarts at all like this particular one. We just feel they are spells he should know."

When it's time for dinner Harry has succeeded in doing the spell wandless and nonverbal. "Let's go to dinner Harry. Lord Peterson is joining us."

"Alright. Showtime."

They get to dinner and see Minerva in the Headmistress seat. All the students are confused when they first walk in before finding their seats. "Students, may I have your attention for a moment. This morning the Wizengamot met for a special meeting. Albus Dumbledore has been removed as Headmaster of Hogwarts. The news and details will be in a special edition of the Daily Prophet this evening, which I'm sure many of you will get soon. As of today, I am the Headmistress of Hogwarts. I will remain your Transfiguration professor until Easter Break. After the break, Professor Lupin will replace me while Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt will be teaching DADA. Also, effective immediately Professor Flitwick will be Deputy Headmaster. All matters of discipline will be referred to him until Easter break. After Easter break he will resume the duties that I have held until today. Last, Professor Lupin is now Head of Gryffindor House. Professor Black will be his Deputy Head of House. I expect Gryffindor to treat him with the same respect they have shown me. If any of you have any questions after reading the Prophet, please talk to your Head of House, myself or Professor Flitwick. Thank you."

"Harry, did you know about this?" Hermione asks.

"Not until we got to the Ministry. I was just going to observe. I can't say I'm upset though, I think this will be good. He admitted to wanting me to compete in the Tournament."

Gasps are heard from those within hearing. "Look guys, it will be in the Prophet later. Basically he withheld my heritage from me when he was supposedly my magical guardian and should have been teaching me all along. He then knew of a way to get me out of the Tournament but didn't. Something isn't right with him and they've recommended him to go to St. Mungo's for treatment."

"That's awful Harry," Hermione says, grabbing his hand across the table. Viktor gives him a side hug and Alex pats his shoulder from the other side. It doesn't take long before owls start flying in with the Prophet and the Hall falls silent as everyone reads the news.

"I'm glad Kingsley Shacklebolt will be our teacher. I've heard many good stories about him from my gran. I love Lupin and I'm sure he'll be just as good as Transfiguration teacher as he is in DADA," Neville says after reading the article.

"Sirius said the same thing, that he is a great Auror. I have no doubt we'll learn a lot from him," Harry says with a smile.

Conversation starts back up in the Great Hall, which signals the fact that everyone has finished reading, but Harry ignores it all and focuses on his food instead. "Hey Alex, let's practice Quidditch tomorrow."

"Yes! Thank you Harry, I was hoping you'd have time for that soon."

Harry grins at him. "I always have time for Quidditch, but my guardians don't always agree. I have a bunch of homework to do but if we go flying in the morning we can do that the rest of the day."

"Sounds perfect. I'm almost done with second year in most of my classes and I want to finish it by Easter break. That way I can start on Third year and have that finished by the end of the summer. Then I can join you all in Fifth year in the fall while catching up on Fourth year simultaneously and take my OWL's at the same time as you. I'd be all caught up by the end of that year. Professor Flitwick said it'd be a lot of work but it'd be worth it, because if I didn't do that I'd have to take it slow because I'd have to wait a full year to take my OWL's and I can't take any NEWT level classes before my OWL's and I can't catch back up if I don't do it now. So either work my butt off for the next year and catch up or work at a normal pace after the summer and simply join the Fourth years in the fall and take class at a normal pace."

"That's impressive Alex, and I wish you luck. If you need any help, let us know," Harry says with a smile.

"It's not that impressive but thanks. Right now I'm at the same level as Dudley so we are taking all our lessons together so we'll both be at the same level by the end of the summer. He'll be joining his class by then while I'll stay on the accelerated track."

"Well done Dudley," Harry says to his cousin across the table. "You are both doing amazing at adjusting to Wizarding life. I know how hard it can be and I'm proud of both of you for embracing this new life."

"Thanks Harry, but we have nothing on what you're doing. Do you think you'll be able to visit over Easter break? Grandmother has asked me to see if we should send an invitation."

"I'm not sure. Go ahead and have her send the invitation and we'll respond when we know our plans."

"Keep it steady Alex! You want to be firm in your seat on the broom. Other players have a tendency to push, so you want to make sure you can stay on your broom regardless of that. You will get that with experience so I want you to fly ten laps around the pitch, focusing on getting comfortable on your broom," Harry yells at Alex, who is looking a little unsure on his Firebolt. Harry is hovering in the middle of the pitch, ready to do what's needed should Alex fall. Viktor is hovering next to him, also ready to help. It's still early, about an hour before breakfast, and they have the pitch to themselves.

"Viktor, can you watch him? I need to burn off some energy after the week I've had."

"Go ahead Harry, I'll watch him. It'll take him at least thirty minutes to fly ten laps."

"Thanks!" Harry says before shooting up higher so he's high above Alex and Viktor and starts flying loops, corkscrews and dives. When he notices that Alex is done with his laps he flies back down, feeling much better.

"You're looking more steady on a broom now."

"I feel more steady."

"Good. Next I'm going to toss the Quaffle at you, all I want you to do is focus on catching without falling off. We're going to move closer to the ground for this, just in case. I want you to push your limits. Don't worry about falling, I will cast cushioning charms so it won't hurt. I want you to find out how far you can reach without falling off. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, even though the thought is scary. Don't worry, we're not far from the ground and like I said, the charms will prevent any falling from hurting. Viktor will catch the Quaffles you don't so don't worry about getting them."

Harry starts throwing Quaffles at Alex, and he manages to catch most of them. A few were a little out of reach, on purpose, and on two occasions Alex falls off. "You see where you reaches too far? The purpose of doing this exercise is so you know when to move your whole broom over and and when to simply reach. If you can reach without risk of falling, it is more likely you'll catch the Quaffle as opposed to flying over to where it is. It's about time for breakfast so we should head inside. We'll do this again. Don't practice on your own please, make sure to have at least one upperclassmen Quidditch player with you so if something goes wrong they can help."

"Thank you Harry. I feel like I'm already much better than I was, and I definitely feel more comfortable on a broom. I find that I really enjoy it."

They've landed by now and have started walking back to the castle. "You're welcome Alex. I'm glad you're enjoying it."

When they almost get to the castle they see several students coming out of the Forbidden Forest. "Dudley?"

"Harry! What are you doing here?"

"We just came from the Quidditch pitch. Why were you all in the Forest, especially this early?"

"The students, a mix of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, look around without really answering."

"Alright, you don't have to tell me I suppose. Just don't get caught, Professor Flitwick would be furious."

"Yes he would be, and I'm sorry but you've already been caught. These five students have been missing since the middle of the night," Cedric says as they walk into the castle. "We've been looking for them, which is also when we noticed you three missing but I can tell where you've been based on the dirt and windblown hair. You five please follow me to the Deputy Headmaster."

The five students look terrified but follow the Head Boy further into the castle while the other three start their way towards Ravenclaw tower. "They are in big trouble unless they have a really good excuse," Harry says. "I feel bad for them, Professor Flitwick is nice until you get in trouble and then he's as strict as Professor Snape."

"I'm sure we'll find out later."

Harry nods and they all three quickly get in the showers so they can get to breakfast. When they get there they see Dudley and the other two Gryffindors he was caught with at the table already and Harry quickly sits across from him. "Alright, spill."

"We had never been in the Forest and didn't think it would be all that dangerous. We had dared some others that we could go in there and be fine. We got lost which is what took us so long. We have detention for a week with Filch and I have to see Professor Flitwick after breakfast since he's my guardian. Everyone else got letters sent home," Dudley says softly.

"Dudley, that was stupid but I can't say I haven't done my fair share of nighttime wandering. Just be glad Professor Snape isn't your guardian anymore, he would have walloped you."

"I'm not so sure Professor Flitwick won't do that either. This is the first time I'm in serious trouble."

"You'll be fine. I'll be in the Gryffindor common room after breakfast so come find me, alright?"

"Alright, thanks."

Harry walks over to Viktor and Alex, who are sitting at the Ravenclaw table, and shakes his head. "They were dared to go there and got lost. A week with Filch and a letter home. I feel bad for them, Filch will not go easy on them in any way. At least they'll learn to be more careful next time."

"You tell a school full of teenagers that something is forbidden and they'll do exactly that. I think every student goes into the Forest at least once while at Hogwarts, and most go more often," Harry grins. "We'll have to take you sometime Alex."

"Harry, your guardians will kill you if you go there again," Viktor says, looking concerned.

"No they won't. I would get grounded and probably walloped but we'll just have to make sure not to get caught. It'll be fine."

"My father would be very upset if he got a letter home," Alex says.

"I'd be surprised if he wasn't. He wouldn't seriously hurt you though, right?"

"No, but I'd be in a lot of trouble. I suppose it would be fun just to see what it's all about. I can't be the only student not to go."

Harry grins. "We'll plan for close to the end of the year. It's much smarter since they can't give you as much detention because there's not enough of the school year left. And getting grounded at school is much worse than getting grounded when you have a whole Manor to spend time in."

Viktor laughs, and so does Alex. "Sounds like you've thought this all out."

"Oh yes. Always think about the consequences and if they'd be worth it if you get caught."

"Mr. Potter-Black, might I advise you not to give tips on how to avoid the most punishment?" they hear behind them. Harry looks back to see Professor Flitwick, and can see from the twinkle in his eye that he's not really upset.

"Hi Professor. Isn't that our goal as teenager though? Find out how much mischief we can get into without getting caught and to minimize punishment when we do get caught?"

"I suppose it is, but as Deputy Headmaster I have to warn you that I can't condone misbehavior even during the last week of school."

"Duly noted sir, we'll keep that in mind."

When Filius gets to the Head Table he looks at Sirius and Remus with a grin. "That boy of yours is giving advice on how to avoid punishment or at least minimize it. I heard him say if it's close to the end of the year you might still get in trouble with your parents but you won't be able to get as much detention. I'd say they're planning something."

"When are they not planning something? If the Twins were sitting with them I'd be more worried. Well, never mind that the Twins just joined them. Now I'm worried," Sirius says in reply, sharing a look with Remus and Severus.

With Minerva as Headmistress she has already decided not to say anything if anyone wants to sit at a different table, and the Twins are the first to do so. Everyone is watching the Head Table to see if they'll be stopped, but when they aren't it is clear that everyone is excited about the possibilities of this.

"Students! May I have your attention for a moment? I will allow any student who wishes to do so to sit at a different House Table. The only exceptions are during Start of Term and End of Term Feasts when you will be required to sit with your house. Please use this time to get to know your fellow classmates."

Several students immediately move to another table, namely those who are dating someone in a different House. Harry smiles up at the Head Table, glad that Professor McGonnagal is so quickly changing that rule, before looking at Hermione who is already sitting next to Cedric.

"So Harry, have you decided yet whether you'll join us?" Fred asks.

Harry leans forward so it won't be as easy to overhear and casts several charms around them to prevent eavesdropping. "Depends on what you're doing?"

"Well we need to celebrate the new Headmistress. We're thinking balloons. Everywhere."

Harry grins. "That would be hilarious but how do you plan to do that?"

"We'll need your help. Alex, Viktor, if you want to help we'd appreciate it. We have a charm that will blow up balloons in big batches, but we'd need several people in different locations doing it. Harry, since you're strong magically we were wondering if you could do the Great Hall. Then someone needs to do the classrooms. We'll skip Potions because that could be dangerous with all those ingredients there. Then we want balloons lining the hallway from the Headmistress office to the Great Hall."

"That sounds fun, but a lot of work. How do you intend to do that without getting caught? I'm not going out after curfew, that's just asking for trouble."

"Before breakfast. We estimate we need about an hour, so if we start two hours before breakfast we will be done in time for even the earliest students to not catch us."

"Sounds fool proof. I'll help. Monday?"

"Yes. Alex, Viktor, you in?"

"I don't know the charm," Alex says.

"We'll teach you tomorrow. So you in?"

"Yes," Alex grins. Viktor also nods. "If we get in trouble I blame you."

"Deal. Harry does the Great Hall, I will do the hallway from the Headmistress' office. George classrooms on second floor, Alex classrooms on third floor and Viktor classrooms on fourth floor. We will get you the balloons tomorrow night. They are in all the House colors so nobody will be left out. The balloons will be everywhere but there won't be so many you can't sit or anything. Just let them free in the room and they'll spread out by themselves."

They all grin at each other, knowing it'll be fun to see the reactions. They don't notice the scowl Sirius is sending their way from the Head Table. "Remus! They are planning something and they've cast anti-eavesdropping spells so I don't know what!" he says in an almost whiny voice.

Remus laughs. "This is how our professors felt whenever we did that. We'll just have to wait and see. Considering Alex and Viktor are involved I doubt it involves any rule breaking."

Monday morning Harry and Alex are up early, and they quickly head out to get the balloons ready. They make it back to their room in time to get ready without running into anyone. The moment they are ready for the day, they head back down to the Great Hall for breakfast as if nothing is wrong. The catch up to Fred and George on their way down, and when they open the doors they all grin in excitement. Quite a few students are already there, batting balloons out of their way and away from the food. However, the best thing are all the balloons floating in the air and the ones attached to the Headmistress' chair. "Harry, you really went the extra mile," Fred grins.

"I had some extra time so I thought I'd make some float to make the whole hall seem more festive as you can see them better, and when you are celebrating someone you decorate their chair."

"I love it. Let's go eat before all the professors get here."

They don't have to wait long, and while half the teachers are glaring around the room it is very obvious that Professor McGonnagal is enjoying herself. She doesn't say anything and just goes about her business as if nothing is wrong.

Before they can leave the Great Hall, Severus stops by their part of the table. "Gentlemen, I hope you left my lab alone?"

Harry nods. "it's too dangerous to have balloons with all those ingredients and cauldrons."

"Thank you. And thank you for admitting you're responsible."

"As if you didn't know."

"Hmm true," he says before walking away. All the students at the table are looking in shock at the professor and Harry, especially after Harry's cheeky response doesn't get him detention.

Next McGonnagal stops by the table. "Thank you for the warm welcome gentlemen. I'm assuming the balloons will disappear on their own or do I need to assign detention this evening to do so?"

"They'll disappear Headmistress. We just wanted to celebrate your appointment," Fred says with a grin.

"Very well, then I won't assign detention for this. Consider it the only time I'll let a prank go unpunished."

They all high five one another before heading to their respective classes. Harry has Remus first and he's curious to see his reaction. He's the first one to the classroom and is immediately hit with a tickling hex. "You brat. How am I supposed to teach a practical lesson with all these balloons?"

"Have students aim cutting hexes at them. It's good practice for moving targets."

Remus looks slightly shocked before nodding. "That's actually a good idea. I suppose your class will be doing that. I have to admit this was well executed. Are you in a lot of trouble?"

"None. She said this will the only time a prank will go unpunished."

"Impressive. That means she's impressed by what you've done. Don't bother sitting down, you'll just have to get up again."

Once the students have all arrived, Remus waves his wand to move all the balloons over to one side of the room. "Alright students. As we can't practice with all these balloons here, you will be practicing cutting hexes. It was Mr. Potter-Black's idea to use the practice to destroy the balloons so I can teach today. You may thank him as normally you would not get to practice this particular hex. Practice on the balloons only. The first student to try it on anything or anyone else will find themselves meeting the new Deputy Headmaster and he's been highly favoring detentions with Filch and letters home. You may start."

Everyone thanks Harry as this seems like a fun class, while he walks over to the Slytherin group. "Hi, I've seen you in the common room. I'm Harry," he says to one of the girls.

"I'm Amanda. Thank you for suggesting this class, it's actually fun," she says while sending a hex at a balloon and watching it pop.

"I agree. Considering it was my fault these balloons are disrupting his class I figured I'd come up with a solution too."

"Thanks. So I really like that common room. It's been nice to meet people from other houses."

"Hey Potter, get lost and get to your own people," Malfoy says.

"I am with my own people or did you forget I'm in all Houses equally? I wasn't talking to you or in your way so keep to yourself."

"You are not nor will you ever be a Slytherin so get over yourself. You think you're so smart getting Dumbledore removed. You really think he'll just leave quietly?"

"I didn't know you like Dumbledore so much."

"I don't. That doesn't mean I'm stupid."

"Well neither am I and I have no such illusions."

"Is there a problem here gentlemen?"

"No Professor. We were just talking. I had never met Amanda and had seen her in the common room so I came over to introduce myself."

"That doesn't explain your conversation with Mr. Malfoy. Please focus on the exercise, not each other please."

"Yes sir."

Towards the end of class Harry is hit from the side with a cutting hex, and it's very obvious who sent it as there's only one person on that side of him. He whirls around to hex right back but before he can do so Remus has cast a shield between them. "I wouldn't if I were you Mr. Potter-Black. Mr. Malfoy will be visiting the Deputy Headmaster, but right now you are still in the clear. Ms. Granger please escort Mr. Potter-Black to the infirmary to get that cut healed. Mr. Malfoy, please follow me. The rest of you, class dismissed. I want a two foot essay on the cutting hex by next class."

"But sir it was an accident!" Malfoy says.

"I don't believe that as there were no more balloons left. Let's go, we're going to see what the Deputy Headmaster has to say about this. We'll let him decide."

"I don't need the infirmary Hermione, I'll be fine. I'm not bleeding."

"He said infirmary so we're going to the infirmary. You really want an overprotective Sirius after you?"

"I suppose not but I'm really fine."

"Harry, it's just a quick visit."

"There's no such thing as a quick visit. Look, I'm fine. Let's just go to class."

Unfortunately for Harry Remus has seen this coming and had already sent a Patronus to Sirius. "Mr. Potter-Black, please go to the infirmary as you were told to do by Professor Lupin. Do I need to escort you there myself?"

"I'm fine! The hex caught mostly robes and only grazed my side a little. I'll put some balm on it later and it'll be fine, and I'm not bleeding."

Not wanting to argue, Sirius sets the class to a reading assignment before lifting Harry out of his chair by the upper arm. "Let's go. Take your bag."

Knowing he doesn't have a choice, Harry follows Sirius out of the classroom. "You know she'll keep me there for hours and there's no need for that!"

"When you get hurt in class it is school policy that you go to the infirmary. You are going no matter what so you might as well stop complaining. After dinner I want you in our rooms, we want to discuss Easter Break. And well done on the balloons."

Harry grins at that. "They were pretty amazing weren't they."

"As professor I can't condone pranking. As your father and as a Marauder I'm proud of you."

They get to the infirmary and to their surprise Severus is there, not Madame Pomfrey. "Severus. Where is Madame Pomfrey?"

"She had to go to St. Mungo's to check on her sister who just had a baby. I don't have classes until this afternoon and offered to cover for her. Why are you here?"

"Harry got hit with a cutting hex in DADA and refused to come here. Remus had to escort Mr. Malfoy to Filius so he sent me a Patronus to intercept this one and bring him here."

"I see. You can go back to your class, I'll make sure this one doesn't escape again."

After checking to make sure the infirmary is indeed empty and casting privacy and anti-eavesdropping charms, Severus turns to Harry. "Where were you hit?"

"I keep telling everyone I'm fine. It just grazed my side but mostly caught my robes."

"I'll decide if you're fine. Remove your robes and shirt please."

Harry does as he's told, knowing he won't be going anywhere if he doesn't. "This is more than nothing Harry. You are bleeding, even if it's not much, and it definitely hit your side. Hold still while I clean this and then spread the balm to heal it."

Harry grumbles a little but holds still regardless. When he's healed Severus calls for Dobby and has him take the dirty shirt and robes and bring clean ones. "Now you may put your shirt and robes back on but I want you to stay here until lunch. You did lose some blood so I want to make sure you regain your strength and don't get any dizzy spell before I release you."

"Oh come on Severus! I'm fine! Just let me go back to class. It's History, I won't be active in there."

"No. Especially not to History because I don't want to hear your father complain about me releasing you too soon. You're staying here so get comfortable."

Harry puts his shirt on but leaves the robes off and flops backwards on the bed. "This is ridiculous."

"I'm sorry you think so but it's for your own good. So what happened?"

"We were practicing cutting hexes to get rid of the balloons in DADA. All the balloons were gone when Malfoy sent a hex at me. I almost hexed him back but Remus stopped me. If he gets a letter home his dad might kill him."

"He won't kill him but he won't be sitting down anytime soon either. It wasn't smart of him to do that."

"I think he was mad because I befriended a Slytherin girl named Amanda."

"I see. He's had a thing for Amanda in the past. I don't know if he still does, but that could be why. Do not retaliate, alright?"

"I won't. I know it would be political suicide to do so."

"Yes it would be. And if we don't go to the press about this now, it will give us leverage over Malfoy should we ever need it."

"Oh I didn't even think about that. That's perfect."

"I'm assuming Sirius told you we are discussing Easter Break tonight?"

"Yes he did."

"Alright. I need to inventory the potions to see if I need to brew anything before break. Let me know if you need anything, otherwise you will be free to go at lunch time."

Harry slowly makes his way to the teacher's wing. It is just after dinner and he knows his guardians hadn't left the Great Hall yet. Malfoy had gotten two weeks detention and a letter home, and nobody had seen him since. Hexing another student normally calls for suspension, but Harry decided that two weeks with Filch is probably worse.

"So what are we doing over break?" he asks as soon as everyone is there.

"Well, there is one thing I'd like to do and that is take you to France. There is a Wizarding hospital there with a Healer who is an expert in corrective surgery for your eyes. He would be able to correct your vision so you won't need glasses anymore."

Harry just stares at Sirius. "You're joking?"

"No, I'm serious. I've already made the appointment but we can cancel if you don't want to do it."

"That's awesome! You have no idea how nice it will be not to need these! I definitely want to do that!"

"Excellent. Also, we have received an invitation for dinner at the Palace. I think we should accept, what do you all think?"

Everyone nods in acceptance so they add that to their schedule.

"I mostly want to practice for the Third task and maybe work on some Parselmagic with Ella."

"That works perfect. I want to brew all the potions we might need this summer," Severus says.

"And Kingsley has indicated he'd like to meet Harry. Harry, he was friends with us and with your parents. He's been incredibly busy with the Aurors, but this is his last week with them so he'll have time to actually see you. Would you be alright with it if I invited him over?"

"That's fine. I also think we need to invite Lord Peterson and his family over for dinner. I want to show Eric Lightning and it'd be nice to see them again."

"I think we'll have a full schedule for the two weeks we'll be home. I will send out the invitations for dinners and such, and I'll send the acceptance for dinner at the Palace. Harry, you'll be recovering from surgery about a day but we thought maybe you'd like to test your new eyesight on the beach in France?"

"That would be awesome. I'm excited about break."

"Good. Now I'm sure you have better things to do or you simply want to tell your friends, so you're free to go."

"Thanks! Bye!" Harry says before running out to go tell his friends the good news.

AN: Much longer chapter than I intended! I wanted to put Easter break in this chapter but decided to post this and move Easter break to the next chapter. Also, the next chapter will have Task 3, or at least part of Task 3, so it will take me a little bit longer to write.


	41. Chapter 41

AN: All the wonderful reviews make me want to write faster and more often! I know some of my other stories are due an update, and I promise I won't abandon them but this story is at a crucial point and I just wanted to get the next chapters written and posted. They will be long chapters, and really should be divided into more chapters but I know many are waiting for the Third Task. This chapter will, unfortunately, not include the Third Task simply because I was at close to 30 pages by the time Easter break was barely halfway done and I wanted to go ahead and post this while I continue writing the rest. For the Third Task, which is taking me a little longer to write as I keep going back and forth on some things, you hopefully won't have to wait long. The most important question on everyone's mind: will Cedric die? Enjoy this chapter and you'll find out in a few days in Chapter 42!

AN2: It has been brought to my attention that the section breaks I put into my chapters aren't posting on here. I will fix this going forward so that it's easier to read! I was definitely using them to make reading easier, and have no idea why it removes them when posting.

Chapter 41

The week before Easter break Harry is restless. When he can't focus during lessons on Thursday evening, Remus gets tired of it and sends him to his room to pack. "We leave early Saturday morning so make sure you get everything you need from here packed today so you can pack what you need from the dorm tomorrow."

Harry goes to pack, which isn't much, before heading back to the dorms. He wants to spend as much time as possible with Viktor before break, sad that he won't get to see him during it. He talked to Sirius, but they just didn't see how it would work, especially with Harry's surgery in the middle. Viktor had understood but they were both disappointed.

"Hi guys. Is everything set for the party tomorrow?"

"Yes. It will be in the all-house common room and there will be charms on the door that make the room appear empty to anyone looking in, unless they know about the party."

"Perfect. I knew Fred and George would come up with something."

"Your guardians don't know, right?"

"I didn't tell them so I'm assuming not. I need to go pack since I won't have time tomorrow. I'll be right back."

Harry quickly packs what he needs from his dorm room, smiling when Alex does the same thing. "I can't believe you are all throwing an unauthorized party."

Harry grins back. "It'll be fine. Just don't drink anything without smelling it first to ensure there's no alcohol in it. As long as you stay sober you'll be fine. They can't very well assign detention the night before break."

"No but they can after break or they could send a letter to my dad."

Harry turns to Alex, looking worried. "Are you afraid of your dad?"

"No more than you are of your guardians. I simply don't want to get in trouble but I'm not afraid of him. You really think you'll get away without punishment?"

"If they get a letter from school they'll be upset, but how much can they do? Our breaks are planned full. It'll be fine. And if we get into trouble, it's worth it for a night of good fun with friends."

"Fine, but don't be surprised if my dad says something when you guys come for dinner."

The party is already in full swing when Harry gets there. Sirius and Remus had wanted to make sure he had packed everything he would need before they let him leave for the night. "Viktor! Sorry I'm so late, it was hard to get away from them."

"That's alright, I understand. It looks like half the school is here, won't it be noticed that we are all missing?"

"Probably, but they won't be able to see us but we can see them so we have time to break up the party and cancel the charms."

Harry makes his way around and says hi to pretty much everyone there. When he finally gets to Fred and George he claps them on the shoulder. "Good party gentlemen. Excellent way to start the holidays."

"Thank you good sir. It's about an hour after curfew so I have a feeling we'll get interupted soon."

"Bummer, but it was fun while it lasted."

It turns out Fred was right as a mere five minutes later the door is opened and a worried looking Sirius looks in. "Alright everyone, clean up! I'm cancelling the charms in two minutes!"

Everyone cleans up quickly and soon the common room is back to the way it used to be and they are all sitting around reading. Fred cancels the charms right before Remus walks in. "You are all late for curfew. You will be making your way to your common room by house where you will be met by your Head of House."

Everyone starts leaving, but Harry and Alex are stopped. "You will join the Ravenclaws to meet Professor Flitwick."

"Yes sir," they both say before quickly following the Ravenclaws.

Remus just shakes his head, knowing that there had been a party as he can still smell the remains no matter how well they tried to clean. He sends a Patronus to all the Heads of House to tell them and to let them know their students are on their way. They had all expected something that night, and Remus doesn't think any of the Heads of House are going to punish the students, but all students would get a letter home. He figured Harry would get scolded and possibly get a swat on his backside, but he doesn't think Sirius or Severus will truly punish him. They all knew he had missed the party after the second task and they all knew how much he had wanted to go. He makes his way back to their rooms, knowing the next morning would come bright and early.

As predicted, Harry gets a swat on his backside the moment he walks into their quarters the following morning. Happy that the school decided against punishment, but worried about the letter home, he looks nervously at his guardians. The swat indicates that they know, but it hadn't been very hard which almost makes it seem like they're not very upset.

"Harry, we do not approve of illegal parties. When they are in the common room we are aware of them because the Head of House can see them and make sure nothing goes wrong. This party had no supervision, and on top of that you were all out after curfew. Now we are aware you missed the parties after the second task, you were in a large group and therefore relatively safe, and for those reasons and the fact that we are far too busy this break to ground you, you will not be punished. But this had better never happen again, understood?" Sirius says.

"Yes sir."

"Very well, let's go to Black Manor."

Amazed that he's not in any more trouble, Harry turns around to leave and head to the apparition point. "Oh and Harry?"

Harry turns around to look at Remus. "Yes Remus?"

"I knew it was a party because I could smell it. Next time, you should do a better job at cleaning up."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Sirius throws an arm around Harry's shoulder and they start walking towards the gates, having their luggage taken to the Manor by House Elf. "We threw some amazing parties back in our day. They were all in the common room so we wouldn't get into too much trouble, but I can't tell you how many times Minerva had to break it up because it was going on too late or too loud. It was amazing. I have to admit I miss having a good party. The last one we had was your birthday. Remus, we need to organize more parties."

"I'm not so sure about that. You've always gone a little overboard with your parties. You're forgetting to mention the amount of times you ended up in detention because you were the one who organized the party."

"That's neither here nor there and those detentions were worth it. I need to teach Harry here how to throw a good party."

"Fred and George throw some good ones. We just did it in the all-house common room so everyone could come. I mean, if it was in Gryffindor Viktor couldn't be there. If it was in Ravenclaw, the Gryffindors and Cedric wouldn't be able to be there. I told Fred and George I wanted everyone to be able to come and this is how they did it. It worked pretty well and we would have been fine if we had made it back before curfew. How did you find us anyway if Sirius had already checked that room?"

"I followed your scent, which was masked by the charms but as soon as the charms dropped I knew where you were. And I just assumed that everyone else was with you."

"I really need to learn a scent masking spell."

"And I won't teach you. You'd get into far too much trouble with that," Remus grins.

"I'll teach you!" Sirius says excitedly. "It's useful to know Remus, and Pronglet will just have to promise not to use it for mischief."

"And you think he'll listen?"

"Since when am I Pronglet again?"

"Yes he'll listen, and if he doesn't it's his backside or free time on the line. And you're Pronglet when we're in public."

"Actually, we should teach him that spell because I'm curious to see if it would work. I was once told that it won't work against your alpha. Since Harry's my cub, I'm wondering if I would still be able to smell him."

"Let's get home and find out," Sirius says, grabbing Harry as they've arrived by the gates. "And pup, this spell is not on the Hogwarts curriculum so you better not teach anyone else."

When they arrive in their living room, Severus is already there reading the Prophet. "Your impending dinner with the Royal Family has made the news Harry."

"Go figure. So Sirius is going to teach me a scent masking spell," Harry grins.

"You think that's a good idea Sirius?" Severus asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, and he's already been told not to use it for mischief or it's his backside or free time on the line. We actually want to test if Remus' theory is true. He's been told that it won't work against him since Harry is his cub."

"Interesting. Let me know if it works," Severus says before turning back to his paper.

"Alright pup. The incantation is Odoratus Dissimulo. The wand movement is as follows. If you want to use it on an object as opposed to yourself, you would move your wand along and around the object."

Harry watches as Sirius says the incantation while moving his wand all the way up and down his body before circling it above his head. "That seems pretty easy."

"I can still smell you Sirius," Remus says. "You're my mate, so that would indicate my information is correct but let's see if it works on Harry."

Harry performs the spell on himself, and they can also the brief green glow that indicates the spell worked. "I can still smell Harry. Harry, try it on Severus please."

Harry does just that, getting a mild glare from Severus, and Remus shakes his head. "I can't smell him anymore. Try the fireplace. It always has a mild dirt smell to it. It'd be nice to cover up anyway."

Harry does just that, and Remus smiles. "Well you are successful in casting the spell, it just doesn't work on you and Sirius when it comes to me. That's positive and useful to know."

"How long will our scent stay masked?"

"24 hours. After that it will start to fade. You might want to learn how to do this one wandless and wordless in case you're ever somewhere without a wand and need to hide from animals or werewolves. Even vampires have heightened capabilities when it comes to smelling wizards and witches."

"Good to know. I'm going to unpack and then practice."

"Master Harry sir, Dobby unpack for you sir."

"Oh, thank you Dobby. Would you mind preparing breakfast? I didn't have time to eat this morning."

"None of us ate breakfast Dobby. Thank you," Severus says from behind his newspaper.

Harry walks over and pulls the newspaper down, trying to read it upside down. "What's so fascinating in this?"

Severus glares at Harry and straightens his newspaper. "It's good to stay on top of what's going on in the world. Go entertain yourself or something."

Harry looks at Sirius and Remus and grins. "Someone needs his coffee. I'm sure Dobby has some ready, I'll go get a cup before someone loses a limb."

When Harry comes back with a large mug full of coffee for Severus he has folded and rolled up the newspaper, swatting Harry with it the moment he puts the coffee down. "Little brat."

Harry just grins at him and sits down on the couch. "I had Dobby make it extra strong. Somehow I felt like you needed it. Did you not get enough sleep?"

"Harry, maybe you should leave him be until he finishes that cup," Remus grins. "Also, Kingsley is joining us for breakfast and he will stay the rest of the day. We are going over the DADA syllabus so he knows what each of the classes are studying and still need to do."

"I hope he's nice. We really don't need another strict professor."

Dobby pops into the room. "Kingsley Shacklebolt at the door for Master Remus."

"Thank you Dobby, please show him in."

Kingsley walks into the room a minute later and immediately gets a bear hug from Sirius. "Kingsley! Long time no see!"

"Sirius Black. So good to see you."

"It's good to see you as well. Now I hate to do this but we have to ask for a Wizard's Oath regarding everything you see and learn about everyone in this room."

"I fully understand. I, Kingsley Shacklebolt, do hereby swear on my magic not to reveal anything about Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Severus Snape and Harry Potter, or anything that happens while at Black Manor or Sirius Black's residence at Hogwarts, to anyone outside this group. So Mote it Be."

"Thank you Kingsley. I'm sure with what happened recently at the Wizengamot you understand our secrecy."

"I do, and I had a feeling there was something going on when I walked into this room to see Severus' arm around Harry."

Sirius quickly gives Kingsley a rundown of the relationships between the occupants of the room.

"Are you going to be a strict professor?" Harry asks when Sirius stops talking.

Kingsley laughs. "That's a very important question, I can see why it's the first one you ask. I'll be close to Professor McGonnagal in strictness. I will allow some fun, as long as everyone pays attention when needed, hands in their homework and participates in practicals. Does that answer your question?"

"What do you make students do in detention?"

"Lines or cleaning the classroom. If I feel it's beneficial an essay as opposed to lines. Are you planning to get detention?"

"No, but it helps to know if breaking a rule is worth it or not. See, with Severus it's usually not worth it because those potions ingredients and cauldrons are disgusting. With Hagrid it's usually worth it because he'd never truly punish me. I just wanted to see where I'd stand with you."

"I see. Well you won't get special treatment like you do with Hagrid, but if I feel you need something harder for detention I would send you to Mr. Filch."

"Harry, just focus on staying out of trouble. DADA is one of your favorite classes."

"Oh I know, and I wasn't planning on getting in trouble in class. But he'll be a professor outside of class too and that's when I usually get in trouble."

"I'm glad DADA is one of your favorite classes Harry. I'd say we'd get along just fine."

"Harry only works with the professor during practicals. His magic is too strong for most students to be able to counter, and there is an odd number in that class anyway. He's more advanced than the other students, and I've occasionally practiced other things during class or let him help with the other students when I know he can already do what's on the schedule that day," Remus says with a smile.

"How advanced are we talking?"

"Wandless and nonverbal advanced."

Kingsley looks slightly shocked and disbelieving so to prove his point Harry waves his hand and his extra lesson notes come flying down from upstairs. He almost bursts out laughing at the look of complete shock on Kingsley's face. He hands over the parchment instead. "This is the list of spells I can do. The checkmarks indicates whether I can do them wandless and or wordless. I have extra lessons four days a week, and while one day is Arithmancy since I'm not taking the class and one day is about the Wizarding world and its customs, the rest is right now focusing on my Animagus form and the Third Task. Since we don't know what the task is, we are focusing on a large variety of spells. The goal is to ultimately be able to do everything at least wordless, if not wandless as well."

"You're an Animagus."

"The only reason I'm telling you is because you're under an oath and can't tell anyone," Harry says before shifting forms. He only stays as Lightning for a minute before shifting back. "All the paperwork is legal, but it's unknown with the Ministry. As an Auror I'm sure you know that I have until my graduation from Hogwarts to formally register my form. Minerva is the only other person who knows, as she has the paperwork to make this legal."

"I see," Kingsley says. He's noticed how Harry has gone from a teenager trying to scope the new teacher to adult in mere seconds. He wonders how much more is being hidden about this family, but decides they will tell him when they choose.

"Breakfast is ready sirs," Dobby says.

Kingsley watches Harry go back to teenager and jump up. "Yes! I'm starving! That party last night definitely could have used more food. I'll have to remember that."

Kingsley sends a questioning look at Sirius who shrugs. "Half the student body had a party last night because Harry was unconscious for the party after the Second Task. We busted them about an hour after curfew."

"How much trouble did they get in?"

"A letter home, since detention is pointless the night before the holidays and nobody wanted to start the first few evenings after the break supervising detention either."

"So how much trouble is this one in?"

"None. Well, that's not true. He got his backside smacked and scolded but that's it. He wasn't in danger, and we understood the reasoning behind it."

"Plus you're Sirius Black. You were the King of Hogwarts parties back in your day. Even us Slytherins were jealous of those parties up in Gryffindor."

"Well there is that," Sirius grins while taking a seat at the table. Harry is already loading his plate with food and Sirius smiles at him.

"It's good to see him eating voluntarily and in amounts normal for a teenage boy. We had to work on that when we first got him away from the Dursleys."

"They starved him?"

"Yes they starved me. Let's discuss fun things, not the Dursleys," Harry says with a mild glare at Sirius.

"Sorry Harry. It's hard not to fall back into the friendship Kingsley and I used to have where we talked about everything."

"Just try to keep some parts of my life private if you could. The Dursleys are something I don't want to hear discussed. Ever. By any of you. Kingsley, I know you can't talk about any of this with anyone else, and I know you're an Auror and therefore on our side, but I don't know how loyal you are to Dumbledore or really anything else about you."

"I promise you I'm no longer loyal to Dumbledore. I heard the meeting in which he was removed from his posts, and I forward the entire meeting minutes to the ICW to have him removed as Chief Warlock there as well. The entire Wizarding World failed you Harry, but the reasons I accepted the job as professor is because I want to help you succeed, prepare all the students for a war we all know is coming if nothing is done, and help protect. James confided in me why they went into hiding, but he didn't know the full prophecy either. I will help you in any way I can because no matter what, you will be a large part of this war whether you choose to be or not simply because someone else has chosen for you."

Harry summons a piece of parchment and hands it to Kingsley. "That's the full prophecy."

Kingsley reads it, and turns incredibly pale. "This means," is all he manages to say.

"This means I either have to kill him or he'll kill me because we can't both live. He doesn't know the full prophecy either as far as we know, but he has labeled me a target because of the beginning of that prophecy." Harry takes the parchment back and sets it on fire. "I know what my role in this war will be, and we are preparing as best as we can. If you are willing to help that's great because frankly we need all the help we can get."

"How can you be so calm about this?"

"I've accepted it and moved on. Quite frankly I don't have time or energy to dwell on it. Right now I need to get through this bloody Tournament first."

"Language," is heard from three different directions.

"Alright. It's a lot to take in, but I'm here to help you in any way you need me. Remus, I think we should get started on those lesson plans if we want to get it done in one day."

"Sounds good. Severus, please keep those two in line. I get the distinct feeling they are plotting something."

Harry gives Remus an affronted look, but it does nothing next to the mischievous twinkle in Sirius' eyes. Remus and Kingsley leave and Severus gives them both a stern look. "I might have had coffee but I need to do some grading and prepare for next term. Considering how busy we'll be I'd appreciate it if you could keep it down."

"Sure thing. Want to go flying Sirius?"

Sirius nods and they both run to get their brooms and be the first on the pitch.

Inside, Kingsley glances out the window and sees Sirius and Harry flying. "He's amazing on that broom."

Remus looks out before turning back. "He's a daredevil that's for sure. Sirius encourages it, Severus and I try to steer him away from the more dangerous stunts."

That evening at dinner both Kingsley and Remus look a little worse for wear. "Did you get it all done?" Harry asks.

"Yes, we did but it was a lot of work. It's good to be done though. What have you been up to all day?"

"Sirius and I went flying and then spent some time in the library. Nothing too exciting really. What is on the schedule for tomorrow?"

"Nothing during the day, and dinner with the Royal Family."

"Wait, that article in the Prophet was true? You know the Royal Family?"

"And soon so will you. Prince Alex is my roommate. He is currently on an accelerated lesson plan to get caught up, but he does attend Hogwarts. He is incredibly nice and we've become good friends."

"I never take much stock in anything the Prophet prints until I can confirm it myself."

"That's always good when it comes to the Prophet. You'll find out for yourself that Alex is just as normal as anyone else. I'm sure if we were to ask you'd be welcome there tomorrow as well. I'm sure they'd love to meet another of Alex's professors."

"Oh, please don't. I don't want to impose."

"It's not an imposition. I gave Alex a two way mirror at the end of the term so we could talk over Easter without having to send owls since he has a lot of formal functions to attend and getting owls would look odd. I'll go ask right now."

Harry is about to jump up from the table when he is stopped by Severus. "Let's finish dinner first and then you can call him."

"It will only take a minute."

"Sit. Dinner first. Nobody gets up from this table until we are done eating."

Harry holds his hand up and the mirror comes flying down. Severus snatches it out of the air before it can reach Harry and gives him a glare that would have terrified many students.

"Hey! I wasn't getting up from the table."

"And now you won't be getting up for a good long while since you will be writing lines when we are done eating."

Harry, who was mostly done with his dinner and isn't appreciating being scolded in front of his new professor, crosses his arms and glares at his plate. The others decide it's probably best to simply ignore him for now, and Harry doesn't even notice when they all finish and get up to head to the living room, with the exception of Severus.

"Alright, explain what that was all about."

"There's nothing to explain."

"Harry, you're rarely ever this argumentative and it's usually because you have a reason."

"I just think it'd be a good idea for Kingsley to come tomorrow, as he's an Auror and that way the Royal Family will know someone within the Ministry they can trust. I know he's not technically an Auror anymore but he still has the badge and he can still get things done within the Ministry if needed. We all know Aurors never stop being Aurors. I wanted to ask Alex and you stopped me, and I didn't like being scolded in front of him."

"I see. Well here is the mirror. I agree with your reasoning and you should call Alex. After you are done with that, you will write one hundred times 'I will not have an attitude with my guardians' before joining us in the living room. You would not have gotten in trouble if you hadn't summoned the mirror after I told you to finish dinner first. The fifteen minutes it took to finish dinner would not have made a difference."

"I know. I don't even know why I did that, I was just irritated I suppose."

"Well try to be less irritated when you join us for tea."

"You think Kingsley thinks less of me now?"

Severus chuckles. "I highly doubt it. He's going to be teaching classes full of moody teenagers so it's good that you've given him a good example of what to expect."

Harry laughs at that and quickly calls Alex. When he explains why he wants Kingsley to come Alex leaves to go check with his dad, and comes back a few minutes later. "He said it's fine. Since he's an Auror he already has all the security clearance he needs and we had someone else cancel so it won't even mess up the seating chart. I have to run, but I'll see you tomorrow!"

Harry quickly writes his lines, which he admits aren't very many, before taking the parchment and giving it to Severus. "Alex said you are welcome to come tomorrow. And before any of you ask, he checked with his dad."

"I suppose I need to find my dress robes then."

"Yes, those are unfortunately mandatory," Harry grins. "Last time we couldn't even properly explore the palace because we were all in uncomfortable clothes."

"And you shouldn't be doing that anyway."

"I suppose. So Kingsley, how do you and Sirius know each other so well?"

"Back during the first war the Aurors used teams of three. I was on a team with Sirius and James."

"And we were the best team out there. Within a team you don't keep secrets, which is why I'm so used to sharing everything with him."

"So you knew my dad?"

"Yes, I did. I still visit his grave every year to remember the great man he was. Your mother would cook us dinner once a week and I got to know her through that. She was very loving and supportive, and had a temper to rival your father's, especially when she was pregnant with you. They went into hiding immediately following your birth and I never got to meet you. I had already lost my wife, who was pregnant at the time, to the Death Eaters and I was terrified to lose my best friends and their newborn son. I was determined to help end that war so you'd have a chance to grow up in a safe world, knowing the amazing people who were your parents before the prophecy came true. When the war ended that night, I was heartbroken. I petitioned for guardianship but it never went through because Dumbledore said you were with blood family. That always meant more than anything else when it came to adoptions and guardianship, so I didn't stand a chance. I wanted to do right by you and raise you to be the man your parents would have raised you to be, but I never got that chance. I know I should have done more in the intervening years but I didn't know how. All I knew to do was to continue working as an Auror to make this place as safe as I could make it for you to grow up in. I was heartbroken when Sirius when to prison. We had been moved to different teams when James went into hiding and I felt partially responsible. I felt that if we had still been partners this wouldn't have happened. I know now that that isn't true, and I can see you are the man your parents would want you to be regardless of the fact that you grew up with those people."

"Thank you. I enjoy getting to know the people closest to my parents. But everything that happened then and before I came to Hogwarts is water under the bridge because it can't be changed. We can change the future and that's what we are working to do. I'm going to bed, but I will see you at dinner tomorrow."

When Harry is out of the room, Sirius looks at Remus. "It's barely 8. Why is he going to bed?"

"I can answer that," Severus says. "Filius warned me that Harry was out in the common room with Viktor until he sent him to bed at four in the morning. Considering we left Hogwarts at seven, he didn't even get three hours of sleep."

"I suppose I can't blame him for wanting to spend time with Viktor before break, but Filius didn't send them to bed before then?"

"He said he told them to go to bed several time and finally at four he had had enough and literally pulled him off the couch and walked him to his bed."

"I see. That probably also explains the little bit of attitude earlier, he always shows that quicker when he's tired. It's good that he's going to bed then."

"Are teenagers always that moody?"

All three adults laugh at Kingsley. "No, but they have crazy mood swings. They'll be fine and happy one minute and snap at you the next."

"How do you deal with that in class?"

"Take points if they get cheeky or mouth off. If that doesn't work assign detention."

"You do that even with Harry?"

"Harry knows not to during class. He also knows if he acts up during our class he'll get punished at home as well, knowing it would make us look bad to have our ward be disruptive. In the case of Severus, he is hard on all his students and they know better than to say anything and to expect detention the second they do. But yes, if Harry were to display attitude during class he would get in trouble just as much as any other student."

"Has he done that this year?"

"He did to me after a run in with Dumbledore. I made him leave class and come back at the end, at which point I gave him several smacks on his backside. You obviously can't do that. If you don't feel comfortable with disciplining him, send him to Filius or Minerva when he gets out of line. Just make sure you include in the note you give him to give to them that you aren't sending him because what he did was so terrible but because you aren't sure you can discipline him fairly. Otherwise they'll be much harder on him than necessary."

"I might just do that."

"You'll find that when it comes down to it, when you are in your professor role the discipline aspect comes easily. Don't worry too much about it, because quite frankly we don't have many students act up during class. They mostly cause trouble outside of class, knowing they have plenty of time to do so. It's the upside to a boarding school. And any Slytherin who causes you problems you are welcome to send to me and I'll deal with them."

"I suppose. Well I really need to get going. Thank you for going over everything with me today Remus, and I will see you all tomorrow evening."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

Kingsley, Sirius, Remus and Severus are in the living room, waiting for Harry. Kingsley wasn't sure where to go, so he opted to apparate to Black Manor first. Finally Harry comes running down the stairs at the very last minute.

"Sorry! I couldn't find these shoes. Turns out I left them at Hogwarts so Dobby had to go get them. I'm ready now."

Severus straightens Harry's tie before grabbing his arm and apparating to the palace. They are shown in through the same entrance they used the last time, and just before they walk into the parlor Harry straightens up and strides in, looking every bit the Lord that he is. Kingsley shares a look with Sirius, who just grins. He's seen Harry like that before, but it's a shock for anyone who has seen him as a playful teenager.

When they walk into the room they see that they are the last ones to arrive, and they also see Harry talking to Alex on the other side. To their absolute shock, Minister Fudge and Lucius Malfoy are there. Sirius, after greeting the Royal family, makes his way over to Harry.

"Harry, I want you to be polite to Malfoy and the Minister. I don't know why they are here, but neither of you are allowed alone with them and you will be polite."

"I will be the four time Lord they don't expect, don't worry. Lucius wouldn't dare say anything after I didn't press charges against Draco."

"Very well, just giving you a warning."

"Did you know they were coming?" Harry asks Alex.

"No, and they haven't introduced themselves to me yet. They are talking to people outside my family, when it is protocol to greet all members of the Royal Family first. Let's go embarrass them, as they are now trying to suck up to the Prime Minister and my father."

Harry watches Alex walk over and gets close enough to listen in and see everything. "Good evening gentlemen, I don't believe we've met," Alex says innocently.

Harry can see the affront on Prince Charles' face and the Prime Minister is also looking shocked. He's not sure he's ever seen Minister Fudge or Malfoy speechless but they appear to be at a loss for words.

Because they aren't doing anything, Alex holds out his hand to greet them, which jumps them into actions and they follow protocol to greet Alex. When Alex turns around and grins at Harry, which isn't missed by the Prime Minister, Prince Charles' turns to Minister Fudge. "Minister, it would be beneficial to read up on protocols before attending a party." He then proceeds to walk away and talk to Sirius and Remus.

The Prime Minister just gives them a look and walks over to Alex and Harry. "Nicely played Alex. And you must be Harry."

"Yes sir. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well. I've heard good things about you. I must say your Minister isn't doing so well."

Harry just grins. "That can't be helped I'm afraid."

Prince Charles joins their little group and smiles at Harry. "I just met our Auror friend Mr. Shacklebolt. He is a very nice man, and I'm glad he will be joining the teaching staff at Hogwarts. I don't think he's the kind to take nonsense from teenage boys, like certain illegal parties?"

Harry flushes and looks down before looking at Alex. "My guardians made it pretty clear that I was never to have one again sir. And it was me who talked Alex into it, he wasn't sure about it at first."

"I see. Well Alex and I have had a conversation about it and if it were to happen again he won't be attending."

"I understand sir."

"An illegal party Alex? Why does that not entirely surprise me?" The Prime Minister asks after Prince Charles leaves.

"Because you know me. It wasn't as much illegal as it was unsupervised and after curfew."

"Ahh I see. Your father wasn't too hard I suppose?"

"No, just a mere lecture on the importance of appearances and all that. I'm sure Harry got into more trouble than I did."

"Not really, just a scolding. I got a letter from Hermione and she is banned from the library for the duration of break. There were wet spots on the parchment so I think she was crying when she wrote that."

"A library ban? That's harsh."

"I thought so too, so I sent her a couple books from our library and told her to let me know what topics she wants books on."

"That was nice of you Harry," Alex says. "Oh, they are calling for dinner. We aren't sitting close together but I'm sure we'll have time to talk after."

Harry ends up seated between William and Lucius. He looks at Sirius, who is on the other side of William and it's clear that they aren't too happy about this. Alex ends up between the Prime Minister and Minister Fudge, with Severus on the other side of Minister Fudge. Harry is certain conversations are bound to be entertaining on that side of the table.

"Hi William. How have you been?"

"Pretty good. Eton is the same as always, but it's strange not having Alex there."

"I'm sure it is. I love having him at school, it's been great getting to know him. So are your holiday breaks the same as ours?"

"No, they are slightly different. I have this week off but we only get a week at Easter, not two weeks."

"I'm glad we get two weeks. It's nice to spend some time away from school."

"Lord Potter-Black, I'm glad we have the opportunity to talk," Lucius says from his side.

"Lord Malfoy, I can't imagine what we'd have to talk about."

"I would like to apologize for my son's behavior. He was out of line and I want you to know it has been dealt with."

"Beating him is not dealing with it Lord Malfoy. Don't look so surprised, it was fairly obvious when he couldn't sit down properly no matter how much he tried to hide it. Heir Malfoy and I will never be friends, and we will likely never get along, but blatantly hexing me isn't the answer."

"I assure you I do not beat my son. Surely you've been spanked at some point in your life, to understand that it can be painful afterwards."

"A spanking is different, and to leave that much pain more than a day later is crossing the line in my book. But you are his father, it is not mine to comment on so I apologize for doing so."

"I do not appreciate my parenting being questioned. If Draco has a problem, he will come to me himself. He does not fear me so I do not think I'm punishing him overly harsh. I'd appreciate it if you stayed out of it."

"Very well, I will do so. Also, apology not accepted. Your son made the mistake, not you. When it comes to me you haven't done anything to apologize for. Except for maybe trying to hex me second year, but Dobby dealt with that."

Lucius flushes red at the reminder, realizing that he owes Harry more than just for his son's mistakes. Harry turns back to talk to William, ignoring Lucius trying to come up with a response. He catches Remus' disapproving look and knows he'll get lectured on dinner topics when they get home. But in Harry's mind, it was worth any lecture Remus might come up with.

When dinner is over, Harry once more finds Alex. "So my father said Minister Fudge was invited and was allowed to bring a guest. He is the one who brought Malfoy. When I realized who he was I filled in my father, who wasn't there when I was initially tested for magic as an infant so he hadn't realized who he was. He is now blacklisted and won't ever be allowed back here."

"Good. I think I'm in trouble for telling him off about beating Draco, but it was worth it. It was obvious nobody has ever pointed out how wrong it is, he sees it as equal to a spanking I might get from my guardians. I then reminded him how he tried to hex me in second year, and he realized he really owes me for not making any of it public. He didn't like it much."

"Professor Snape was really getting a rise out of Minister Fudge and I could tell the Prime Minister was having a hard time controlling his laughter. Snape was giving dry, straightforward and honest answers to everything, and never lost his composure. It was hilarious. I wish you could have heard it."

"I might ask Severus for the memory and watch it later. I see them waving me over, I think we're leaving soon."

"Alright. We'll talk through the mirrors."

Harry politely says goodbye to everyone before joining his guardians and Kingsley. They all apparate to the Manor where Remus turns to Harry. "Did you know that saying that to Lucius would anger him?"

"Well of course I did. I told him beating his son is bad and then reminded him of trying to hex me second year. There's really no other response."

"Then I want you to go get changed and go to bed. You knew better and there was no need for that."

"Oh come on. He deserved it. I might not like Draco but he doesn't deserve what he gets from his dad. It wasn't that bad."

"Harry, you may not like him but right now he has a lot of influence at the ministry. The fact that the Minister brought him told you that. Get upstairs and go to bed. If you aren't tired you can think about things you could have talked about without angering him."

"Fine. But I do not regret saying that to him. I will make sure to mention it to Lord Peterson tomorrow just in case something comes of it."

Harry leaves the room and the others sit down. "Nightcap Kingsley?"

"Thank you. I have to say they are very nice people."

"Yes they are."

"I overheard Harry's conversation, I didn't think it was that bad," Sirius says.

"Maybe not but he has to be more careful what he says around influential people, no matter how much he hates them. You've been training him on that for weeks and he just completely ignored his training."

"I know but I feel bad sending him to bed early."

"He'll be fine. He's been going over his list of spells and improving the amount he can do wandless so I have no doubt he'll be asleep quickly."

"I was impressed by how well Harry acted in front of everyone tonight. For a teenage boy he was remarkably composed and followed protocol to the tee," Kingsley says with a smile.

"We've been teaching him protocols and deportment all year. It's really showing and he knows when to act like a four time Lord and when to act like a teenager. Lucius was his only slip up."

"He did well. I'm going to go say goodnight to him and then head to bed myself," Severus says with a smile before heading upstairs.

"Harry, may I come in?"

"Hi Severus."

Harry is lying in his bed, reading a book. He puts it on his side table when Severus comes in.

"I just came to say goodnight. You did very well at the dinner tonight, even if you did slip up a little with Lucius. But we all agree it's hard not to say something around that man."

"Thank you. I don't like that Remus is upset with me. At some point can I see your memory of the dinner? Alex said it was entertaining."

Severus grins. "The Minister is an idiot. Yes, you may when we have time. And I don't think Remus is upset with you, he just wanted you to know he disapproved of how you handled Lucius. He also said you were likely tired anyway after practicing wandless magic all day?"

"Yeah I added six spells that I can now do wandless that I had already been able to do nonverbal."

"That is excellent Harry. I'll let you get back to your book. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Severus."

Before leaving for his room Severus walks back downstairs. "Remus, Harry is worried you're upset with him. You might want to talk to him before he goes to sleep."

"Alright, I will. Thank you Severus."

It doesn't take long before everyone heads to bed, Kingsley having been offered one of the guest rooms. Remus stops by Harry's room and Harry feels better after they talk, knowing that Remus isn't upset.

The next morning Harry is excited for the Petersons to get there. He's excited to show Eric his Animagus form, and to simply have people to hang out with who aren't his guardians. They arrive just after breakfast and it's obvious Eric is just as excited.

"Before you all run off, I want to show you something," Harry says. He waits for everyone to look at him before turning into Lightning. He transforms back a minute later to stunned looks from Eric and Lisa. "What do you think?"

"Wicked!" Eric says, finally finding his voice.

"I figured you'd say so. So I want to turn my playroom into a lounge. Do you want to help?"

"Yes! Let's go!"

"Boys!" Sirius says before they can run off. "Lunch is at noon. Try not to break anything and Harry, you know the rules."

"Yes dad. We'll be fine," Harry says before taking off towards the stairs. Eric and Lisa follow quickly.

When they get to Harry's room and walk into what will be the lounge, Eric looks around. "This is the same size as ours. I can't believe you have this to yourself. We'll need to get things for it though."

"True. Maybe I should talk one my guardians into taking us to Diagon."

Harry runs back down the stairs and stands right in front of Sirius. "Dad, we want to decorate my lounge but we'd need to go to the store. Would you be willing to take us?"

"No."

"Ahh please dad?" Harry asks, giving him sweet innocent eyes.

Sirius sighs. "And what do you suppose their parents do?"

"I don't know, whatever they are doing now."

"If they agree, I will take you."

Harry turns around and gives Lord Peterson the same look, upon which he immediately starts laughing. "Yes, you may go."

Harry runs back up the stairs to share the good news. "Sirius is taking us to the store. Come on!"

Sirius looks slightly hesitant when the three come running down the stairs, and Remus and Severus are grinning. It doesn't get better for Sirius because as soon as they get to the store. The same sales lady who recognizes them from before approaches them, ready to make another large sale. "You'll have to talk to my son," Sirius says. "He's planning to decorate his lounge this time."

"He must be very lucky to have a large bedroom and a lounge," the sales lady says with a smile, remembering the large furniture they had gotten for his bedroom.

"He sure is lucky. He's not going to be so lucky if they don't stop jumping on things. Harry!"

"Sorry. Oh, you're the sales lady! I need lounge furniture. Comfortable bean bag chairs, book shelves for both toys and books, comfortable chairs. That kind of stuff. Show me what you have please."

"Very well, follow me."

Several hours later Harry has picked out everything he wants and it's scheduled to be delivered. Sirius knows it will be an amazing room where Harry can spend time with his friends or simply relax. The sales lady is happy to ring it all up, not getting the opportunity often to sell this much in one time.

"Ice cream?" Sirius asks. Seeing their eyes light up they make their way to Fortesques where all three teens get large servings of ice cream. It is with that, that Sirius escorts the three of them back to the Manor high on sugar just after the furniture is delivered.

"Alright Harry, I'm assuming you can handle it from here?"

"Yes dad. Thanks!"

Sirius sits down on the couch with a sigh. "What did you do to them. They are more hyperactive than when they left," Henry says.

"Fortesques. I might have agreed to ice cream?"

All the adults laugh. "I vote you supervise them then," Severus says. "I was about to show Sara my lab, and based on the noises I'm hearing from upstairs they need supervision."

"Ahh come on, I just spend several hours with them. Someone else gets to supervise."

"I agree with Severus. You gave them a sugar high, you get to deal with them. And you have to do it without busting their butts," Remus says, trying to contain his amusement.

"Fine, I'll go supervise. Hopefully they've already unpacked one of those beanbag chairs. I have to admit those are incredibly comfortable."

Sirius arrives upstairs to absolute chaos. Harry is in the middle of the room, moving everything into place using his wand. Sirius is glad he's at least not trying it wandless, but when Harry starts moving a chair with Eric on it, he stops him. "Alright Harry, calm down. Let Eric get off before you move it, we don't need accidents."

When Harry finishes everything, Sirius has to admit it looks really nice and seeing Eric and Lisa lounging on some chairs Sirius decides that this really will be nice to have for Harry when he has friends over. "Let's head downstairs. Lunch is likely almost ready. And might I advise you to keep the craziness to a minimum?"

He has barely finished speaking when they all run downstairs, Sirius following at a slower pace. Sirius turns out to be right, and soon they are all seated around a table on the back porch enjoying lunch. It's a nice day out, and they want to take full advantage of it. "Do you three have plans for the afternoon?" Henry asks.

"Eric, do you want to go flying?"

"I thought you'd never ask! Can we dad?"

"You may, but no crazy stunts. Harry, that means no teaching him crazy stunts."

"Understood. Lisa, you may join us too if you want."

"That's alright, I'll stay on the ground."

"Are you sure? We don't mind and I don't want you to get bored."

"Really, it's fine. I prefer watching people fly over actually flying myself."

"Well if you're certain. If you change your mind you're welcome to join us."

"Harry, did you tell Henry about your little run in with Lucius yesterday?"

Henry looks at Harry sternly, having the feeling he's not going to like this by the slightly guilty look on Harry's face. "I hadn't yet. Lucius Malfoy was at the dinner with the Royal Family last night. I might have told him he's wrong for beating his son, refused his apology on his son's behalf and reminded him of trying to hex me in second year."

Henry closes his eyes briefly. "I will do damage control should it be needed. I'm not sure Lucius will try anything, but this is good to know just in case something does happen. Do we need to have another conversation about how important appearances are within Wizarding politics?"

"No sir. I know it probably wasn't the best thing for me to do, but when they seated me next to him at the table I just couldn't hold back."

"Well like I said, I don't think anything will come of it, but I will add it to your file. Really Harry, you can't make my job easy now can you."

"Where would the fun in that be? Have to keep you busy somehow."

"Well you sure do that. Somehow I don't mind, you're one of the easier people to work with."

"That's scary. Well I'm going to go get my broom. I'll get you one too Eric."

Soon both boys are up in the air, avoiding the more crazy stunts while all the adults are still outside. Soon they are left unsupervised and Harry teaches Eric a corkscrew and a dive. Henry catches them towards the end of the dive, but doesn't say anything besides an admonishing look that has them both ducking their heads.

"We have to get going Eric. Your grandmother is coming over for dinner and you need a shower before then."

"Ahhh alright. I probably won't see you until this summer Harry. Good luck in that Third task."

"Thanks Eric. We'll get together as soon as we can this summer," Harry says before sending his broom inside and transforming into Lightning. He flies up in the air, before diving fast towards Eric and snatching the broom out of his hands. Eric screams but Harry simply flies towards the back porch, drops the broom and transforms back. Eric runs over and tackles Harry and soon they are wrestling in the grass.

Henry shakes his head and walks over before separating the boys. "Alright you two, let's get inside."

Severus comes rushing out right at that moment, the others right behind him. "We heard a scream."

"Harry transformed into lightning, dove at the broom Eric was holding which cause Eric to scream when he grabbed the broom. The noises after that were these two wrestling in the grass."

"I see. Sara said you really have to get going, and it looks like Eric really needs a bath now. So does Harry."

The group makes their way to the floo, and soon they have said their goodbyes. As soon as they are gone Sirius turns Harry towards the stairs and with a swat to his behind sends him upstairs. "Go shower, you need it. And don't think I've forgotten that you transformed without supervision."

"Henry was there."

"You know perfectly well that's not the supervision we meant. Go shower, it's almost time for dinner."

The rest of the evening is spent playing games. Harry gets grounded from his Animagus form for a week, mostly for diving at Eric like that when his dives aren't very controlled yet, but he doesn't really mind too much. He knows there are plenty of other things to do at the Manor, and he likely won't even miss it.

When Severus announces the following morning that he still has several potions to finish up, and Sirius and Remus both need to prepare for the next term, Harry decides to get Ella out of her habitat and start on some parselmagic.

**Hi Ella, sorry I haven't seen you much lately. **

**That's alright Harry. The habitat is nice and warm. Are you ready to do some parselmagic?**

**Yes. I just say the spells in parseltongue, right?**

**Yes, but not all of them will work. You will have to practice and see which ones do and which ones don't. **

**I will add a column on my parchment of spells I've learned and will write whether it can or can't be done in parseltongue. Are there any particular types of spells that are better than others?**

**I don't know, I'm sorry. **

**That's alright. I'll start at the top of the list then. **Harry pulls out his wand and casts **Incarcerous** on a lamp. It is immediately surrounded by rope and Harry grins. He tries to finite, but it doesn't work. **Finite.** **That worked. So if I cast in parseltongue you need parseltongue to counter it. That would be good in a duel because even if they know wandless magic they won't be able to undo it. Let's try the next one. Accio Sirius quill!**

The quill is following into the room by Sirius, who looks a little surprised to see Ella. "Did you have to summon my quill? Why are you practicing Accio anyway?"

"Parselmagic. I've figured out that if I cast something in parseltongue, it can only be countered in parseltongue. So now I'm going down my list of spells to see what I can cast in parseltongue. Once I figure that out I'll see if I can do them in parseltongue and wandless or nonverbal.

**Parseltongue has to be said out loud. You can't think parseltongue.** Ella says.

"Oh, well Ella just said I can't think parseltongue so it has to be done verbally, which isn't a problem since most won't understand it anyway."

"That's excellent Harry. Now may I have my quill back?"

"Oh I suppose. Do you think we can practice some new spells after lunch?"

"I have a lot to do for next term and I want to finish today. Practice the spells you already know, or maybe Severus will be done by then."

Harry looks disappointed but he understands. "Alright, I'll ask him and otherwise continue wandless practice."

Harry continues his parselmagic, and finds that the list of spells he can't do appears to be random. There are quite a few useful ones that he can do in parseltongue, and for that he is happy. When it's time for lunch he wraps Ella around his shoulders and heads to lunch.

"You know Harry. I'm fairly used to her but to see her wrapped around you like that still brings out my basic instinct to protect you from her," Severus says when he walks in and sees Ella.

"I know, which is why I usually leave her in my room but she as a great help this morning. Are you done with your potions or will you be going back to you lab this afternoon?"

"All my potions are simmering right now. They'll need to simmer until tomorrow. Why?"

"Will you help me practice some new spells this afternoon?"

"I have a better idea. Now that we have the space and time, what do you say to a mock duel to put what you've learned to practice?"

"You're serious?" Harry ask, excitement clear in his eyes.

"Yes I am. I take it you'd like that?"

"Absolutely! I've dueled Remus and Sirius but never you."

"Good. Then after lunch I want you to put on battle robes and meet me in the back yard. Now calmly eat your lunch, there's no need to rush."

Harry tries to eat as calmly as possible, but he still feels like it's taking ages before he's in the backyard, ready for a duel.

"Alright Harry. Nothing that could seriously injure. Are you ready?" Severus asks, standing in front of Harry in his intimidating black battle robes.

Harry nods and soon they are full out dueling. Sirius and Remus have abandoned their work to watch, and they are both impressed by how well Harry is holding up even if it's clear that Severus is holding back slightly. When Harry finally falls to a well timed Incarcerous from Severus, followed by a Petrificus before Harry can free himself, they both clap.

"That was excellent!" Sirius says. "Very well done Harry! Do either of you need healing?"

They both shake their heads, but Sirius looks doubtful at the slight limp Harry is displaying. "I don't believe you Harry and Severus I saw you get hit by a boil hex to your side. Let's go inside and we'll heal you both."

"I'm fine Sirius," Severus says. "I can heal myself."

"You always heal us after duels, so you will allow yourself to be healed properly. Inside. Now," Sirius says, using his stern teacher voice.

Laughing at the fact that Severus is getting scolded he doesn't notice the stinging hex Severus sends at him and quickly runs inside. Or at least run as much as he can, as his knee is really bothering him. "Alright upstairs with you both. Harry's room."

When they get to Harry's room Sirius makes them lay side by side on Harry's bed. "This will make healing you both much easier and more comfortable as neither of you will be allowed to move for a bit." Sirius banishes their robes with the exception of their pants and they both groan in protest. "Be quiet. You are both covered in bruises. Severus, I saw you land on that garden gnome and Harry you took some nasty tumbles as well. Neither of you are seriously injured but I will be healing you both. And Severus, before you complain about not being a child, might I remind you about doing the exact same thing to us when we need healing after a duel?"

"Fine, but make it quick."

Harry is just staring up at the ceiling, letting Sirius heal him. "You twisted your knee Harry. Take this potion, it will heal it but you'll have to lay still for about an hour. I've finished with all your bruises and cuts, so that's the only thing left. I will do Severus' bruises while you wait."

"How did your knee happen?" Severus asks, looking at Harry.

"When you sent that first Petrificus and I jumped out of the way, I landed wrong."

"You were doing really well, knowing when to get out of the way as opposed to shielding. Towards the end you were getting tired which is how I got through your shield."

"I know. I need to start doing some exercise. I think I'm going to start running in the mornings before breakfast, to build up my stamina for duels. I need to be able to hold up longer."

"Take someone with you when you do, but otherwise I think that's an excellent idea. Many Death Eaters know a lot of nasty spells, but they don't have the stamina to duel for very long. If you keep moving around like you do, you'll have the advantage of being able to tire them out while you can keep going."

"Neville mentioned wanting to get in better shape. I'll see if he'll go running with me."

"I wouldn't mind designing an exercise program for you if you'd like," Sirius says. "Aurors all have to go through one. I could write it out for you or I could have Kingsley supervise it. He'd love it."

"Why can't you do it?"

"Because I hate early mornings."

"Should I be worried if I asked Kingsley?"

"No, but you will likely be sore after the first couple sessions with him. He's the one who put James and I through our training and I can tell you right now that he's not easy. But when he's done training you, you will be in the best shape of your life."

"I'll consider asking him. Once I can get up again I'll write Neville and see what he thinks."

"Alright. Severus, you are done and you can get up if you'd like," Sirius says before spelling Severus' clothing back on. "Harry, you still have half an hour. Do you want a book to read or something?"

"I have one right here. You're leaving me?"

"I was going to go back to work and come back to check on you in thirty minutes. You want me to stay?"

"Well I think at least Severus should stay. He's the one that injured me after all, and it's boring here by myself."

"I'll stay and make sure he's alright in thirty minutes. You two go back to work or you'll never be done," Severus says, laying back down next to Harry.

"You've been practicing your dueling, haven't you? You weren't this good the last time you dueled Sirius."

"Dobby showed me the Room of Requirement. I've been sneaking there and I've been practicing on dueling dummies."

"Hmmm I ought to punish you for that, as it's not the safest thing to do, but I find that I'm impressed by how much it has helped you. Why didn't you tell us?"

"I wanted to see if it would actually help, and after a while I got worried that I'd get grounded if I did tell you."

"You probably would have been, but grounding does not stop your lessons so we probably would have incorporated that room into your dueling lessons. It would have helped you. I'll make sure we start using that room more, it would allow us to practice much more than in our quarters. Don't hide anything from us, alright? Even if you get in trouble, we won't be unreasonable about it."

"I know, and I don't know why I hid it. It was nice to have something to myself, something nobody else knew about."

"I suppose I understand that as well. And when all this is over you can keep things to yourself, but right now it's important that we know where you are at all times. Did you remember to give Cedric and Hermione the floo password?"

"Yes, I gave them one that will only work tomorrow. They have no idea where this place is which I don't want to tell them since they can't occlude and I don't want to have to ask for an Oath. Hermione will floo from Cedric's house, her parents are driving her there."

"Alright, good. Do you have an idea what you'll be doing?"

"Not really. Hermione is banned from the library for the duration of Easter break because of the party, so I have a feeling she'll want to spend time in ours. We've been sending books back and forth depending on what she wants or needs."

Severus chuckles softly. "It's probably the first place she'll go, since she's already seen the house and knows where everything is."

"Probably. I can give Cedric a tour while she loses herself in her books."

"I'll be finishing the last of the potions, so if you come into the lab just knock first so I know you're coming in."

"I can do that. Cedric is pretty good at Potions and he said he really likes doing it. He wants to be an Auror, but I have a feeling he'll love your lab here."

Severus smiles. "It is a really nice lab and I can't believe you'd let me do whatever I want with it. It has the newest and best equipment and every ingredient imaginable, and Dobby restocks what I use. It's a Potions Master's dream."

"I let you use it because half those potions, if not more, are going to be used by me and because I love you. Besides, I'd just blow up the lab if I was in there unsupervised trying to brew."

"You do make a valid point. I'm surprised Sirius isn't as accident prone as you are."

"He is, but Remus stops a lot of his crazier things that get him hurt. I've heard stories from their Hogwarts years and Sirius was in the infirmary quite often."

"I do remember hearing about that. Anything you want to talk about while we have some time to kill?"

"Not really. I keep wishing I knew what the Third Task was so I could actually practice for it. I love learning all these new things but I have no idea if it will be useful or not."

"We did a lot of research into past Tournaments, and they all have a trend. They start with some kind of animal and the last task usually involves a lot of spell knowledge. I don't know if you snuck out to the Quidditch pitch since they banned all students from there last week?"

"No, I never got the chance to go, why?"

"From what we could see, they are building a maze. We think, and this is only theory, that you will have to find your way through the maze, and I have a feeling there will be things to fight along the way."

"That sounds like a bad idea and like a lot could go wrong."

"Yes it does, but everything we are training you for would be useful for that. You've covered how to fight off most animals in DADA by now, and we've been covered how to counter spells. If that's really what the task is, you'll be fine and very well prepared. You will be wearing a tracking bracelet so if something does happen we can get to you."

"Do you think Voldemort will try something?"

"It's a possibility. He hasn't so far which makes it reasonable to believe that he will this time, even though as far as we know he doesn't have a corporeal body yet. We still don't know who put your name in the Goblet and that is worrying as well. But no matter what happens, you will not be alone."

"I don't think I'll ever stop worrying, but I know everyone will do whatever they can to keep everyone alive. If Voldemort comes back, will you go back to spying?"

"No. I actually already had Madame Pomfrey inject something into my mark so I won't feel it burn anymore and he won't be able to summon me. It had been getting darker, which indicates that he is coming back and getting stronger, so I took precautions. Should that happen I will be able to publicly acknowledge my relationship to you because my cover will be blown already."

"But that would make you a target."

"No more than you are a target Harry, and being a spy is not without just as much risk. I don't want to spend any more time hiding the fact that I'm your godfather."

"Just let me be there when we tell the school, please. I just want to see the reactions."

"I promise you'll be there. I agree it will be entertaining. Your knee should be held, let me run a diagnostic." Severus gets up from the bed and runs the diagnostic, to see that Harry's knee is healed but he has a large bruise left. "Take this jar and apply some cream to your backside. You have a bruise left. You probably landed on something at some point."

Harry takes the jar and walks to the bathroom to apply the cream. He thinks he was able to cover the whole bruise but he's not about to ask Severus to check. He's about to get dressed when Dobby pops in with clean clothes. "Master Harry you missed a spot sir."

Harry twists around to look in the mirror, not ashamed of being naked in front of Dobby as Dobby has a habit of popping into the bathroom with clothes after he's already dried off and ready to get dressed. "Master Harry let Dobby do it," says Dobby when he sees Harry trying to apply cream to a spot he can't quite see.

Harry let's Dobby do it, and soon he is dressed and ready to go. "Thank you Dobby."

When he walks into his bedroom, Severus is looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "Did I just hear Dobby?"

"He's crazy at times. You think it's almost dinner time?"

"Let's go find out. If it's not I think some tea and biscuits would be welcome. I'm always hungry after a duel."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxx

As predicted Hermione barely greets Harry before taking off towards the library. "She'll be occupied for a while," Harry says with a grin. "Want me to show you around?"

"Sure. This living room is huge."

"I love it, and often we need all this space with all the people that live here. I hate to do this, but I need a Wizard's Oath that you won't share who you see here with anyone who isn't here."

Cedric swears the oath and Harry starts the tour. Cedric is suitably impressed with Harry's rooms, especially the lounge, but his jaw drops when he sees the lab. "Professor Snape?"

"Good morning Mr. Diggory. You're welcome to come in but watch the cauldrons. I'm decanting all the potions and have to keep track of what's what and in how many vials."

"I didn't know he lived at Black Manor Harry."

"It's why I asked for that Oath. Not many people know that little detail. This is his domain but as he said, you are welcome to look around. I know you take an interest in potions and this is all top of the line equipment."

Harry grabs a ladle and starts helping Severus while Cedric looks around. "This lab is amazing. You could make just about any potion you want with all of this."

"Yes you can," Severus says with a smile. "And Harry has instructed his elf to keep it stocked so anytime I use something it automatically gets added to a list of ingredients that needs restocked. My lab at Hogwarts is nice but it doesn't compare, so I do all my private brewing here instead."

"Those look like various healing potions. I'm assuming they are for private use?"

"Yes. I stock the infirmary but I do that at Hogwarts. These are all for our stores here, and I have a feeling we'll need them all at some point. I made bruise balm over the weekend and we already had to use some yesterday."

Harry grins. "Half of it was on you so don't even try to blame that all on me."

"True, but that could still be blamed on you as you were the one who caused the bruises."

"So then my twisted knee and bruises could be blamed on you so we're back to where we started."

"No, those were the fault of you jumping and ducking without watching where you were going."

"It's hard to watch where you're going when you have hexes flung at you. Let's just call it a draw and say it's a good thing you just made some. That would have gotten us lectured by Pomfrey."

"I'll concede the point. I would close your mouth Mr. Diggory, before you catch flies."

"You could call him Cedric you know. We aren't in school."

"I am aware of what his first name is, thank you."

"You're welcome. Well I think we should go rescue Hermione from the library before she goes in so deep she'll never come out."

Harry and Cedric walk out, Cedric still too stunned to speak. When he finally does he gives Harry an incredulous look. "That banter back and forth, that's normal?"

"For the most part, yes. And before you ask we had a duel yesterday."

"You dueled Professor Snape and lived to tell about it?"

"We weren't allowed to use anything that could seriously injure or kill and he was holding back, I could tell. Hermione, you ready to do something else?"

"Harry, how can you live in this house and not spend every waking moment in the library?"

"I spend plenty of time in the library but there are a lot of other things to do here as well. Come on, it's nice out. Let's go outside for a bit."

"Harry, this house is incredible. It's yours?"

"It's Black Manor, so yes, it's mine as Lord Black."

"That's amazing. No wonder you love coming here. This backyard is really nice as well."

Harry sits down in a lawnchair and smiles when Dobby puts a pitcher of lemonade on the table. "It is. Did you see the pitch?"

Cedric looks to where Harry is pointing and grins. "I hadn't, but we'll have to try it out later. Did you see the maze they are growing on the Quidditch pitch at school?"

"No, but Severus told me about it. I can't believe they'd do that to our field just for a Tournament."

"I know. I hope the remove it soon afterwards so we can fly again. I'm slightly worried about what they're going to put inside it, but I know you probably don't want to talk about the tournament."

"I don't but I share your concern. Was your dad upset over the letter home?"

"Not really. He scolded me a little about it not being proper for a Head Boy, but since the school didn't really care too much he didn't either. I can't imagine you having gotten off easy."

"I did actually. Just a scolding. I think Hermione got into the worst trouble out of all of us."

"My dad was so mad. He thinks it's Cedric's fault, which is why we came today because my dad is away at a conference. My mom doesn't think it's Cedric's fault and knows all the things we've gotten into over the years. She's seen the books you've been owling me and said you are a good friend to help me out like that."

"You'll have to tell me all you've done over the years Hermione. I don't think I know the half of it."

Harry laughs. "I'm not sure you want to know. Ron and I corrupted her."

"I doubt you did, I think it was just very well hidden. Alright Harry, let's go fly. Hermione, you want to join us?"

"No, I really want to go back to the library. I'll see you at lunch."

Before Harry and Cedric have even retrieved their brooms Hermione is already on her way back to the library. Harry and Cedric are soon joined by a scowling Sirius. "Hermione and Remus got into a discussion about some book. I decided to leave while I still could. May I join you?"

"Of course!"

"Thanks. By the way you left your two way mirror on the kitchen table and Alex tried to call a few minutes ago."

"I'll call him back before lunch. Let's play catch the snitch."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Harry, Cedric and Sirius stumble into the kitchen, Remus, Hermione and Severus are already there, apparently still discussing some book. Harry grabs the mirror and quickly calls Alex back, who is apparently by himself and bored. "Hey guys, do you mind if Alex comes over? He's bored."

"No invite him! There's no reason for anyone to be bored!"

"Alex, come over here. The password for the floo is Hinkypunks. We're all in the kitchen having lunch."

Harry sits down and a few minutes later lunch appears on the table, just as Alex comes through the floo. Lunch is a boisterous affair, especially when Sirius starts telling stories about his school days and Remus tries to stop him. Sirius purposely avoids the stories involving Severus, and by the end of lunch everyone is laughing. The teens all leave for Harry's lounge, while Sirius, Remus and Severus enjoy the quiet downstairs. "I'm glad we usually just have Harry. I'm not sure I could handle more than one teen at a time at home. Even at school I have my own space, but here you can hear them everywhere," Severus says.

"You'd get used to it I'm sure and that's why silencing charms were invented. Besides, if we had four teenage kids we could always send them to separate rooms when they get too loud. Or send them outside to play."

"True. For now I'll just enjoy the quiet and read a book. We'll see how long it lasts."

Everyone ends up staying until well after dinner, and when they all finally leave Harry sits down with a sigh. "I love having a home to invite friends to."

"We'll be dueling again today," Severus tells Harry the next morning. "And you should read this article in the Prophet."

Harry takes the offered pages of the Prophet and grins. "Dumbledore was removed as Chief Warlock of the ICW? That's amazing! I'm sure he's not happy though. It doesn't give much more information but I'm sure it's based on the Wizengamot meeting notes."

"Actually Severus, I invited Kingsley over. I think instead of dueling, Harry should start his exercise program if he's still serious about that. You may invite Neville over if you want. I think you'd benefit from the first sessions to be in an environment where being sore won't hinder your movements too much."

"Alright, I'll floo call Neville. He wrote me back saying he's interested in doing training with me."

Harry gets up and floo calls Neville, who agrees to come over as soon as he's done with breakfast. Harry advises him to bring a change of clothes, just in case. He's barely done when Kingsley walks in behind him. "Severus said you were floo calling Neville?"

"Yes, he'll be over when he's done with breakfast. You're not going to be awful, right?"

"I will be as hard as I need to be. You should go change into exercise clothing, assuming you have some?"

"I have sweats and tshirts. That works right?"

"Yes, it does. Go change, I'll be in the kitchen."

When Harry makes his way back down to the kitchen Neville is already there, looking at Severus nervously. "You know Severus, you could try smiling. You're making Neville nervous. Neville, he can't take points or assign you detention. He's not as scary as he's pretending to be."

"You live with him?"

"Yes. You can occlude, right?"

"Yes, it's part of my Lordship training."

"Good, please occlude that information for now if you would."

"Boys, as nice as this is I want you outside on the back lawn ready to start in two minutes," Kingsley says sternly.

Harry and Neville scramble to get their shoes, and Harry asks Dobby to keep a pitcher of cold water outside. They make it outside on time, and to their horror Sirius, Remus and Severus sit down on the porch to watch. When Kingsley notices he turns to them. "All three of you, get workout clothes on and join us. If you have time to watch you have time to join."

They all start protesting but Kingsley isn't having it. He transfigures their clothes into workout clothes. "Sirius Orion Black. Get your backside over here. Now. You know what happens when you refuse a workout."

Sirius immediately jumps up and joins Harry and Neville, who both look curious about what would have happened if Sirius had refused. "You don't want to find out, trust me," Sirius says.

Soon Kingsley has gotten Remus and Severus to join, under what threat the others aren't certain. "Alright, we're going to start with stretching. Spread out in a circle and copy my moments."

Once Kingsley is satisfied that they are fully stretched, he continues. "Now I want each of you to run ten laps around the Manor. I have put up charms so I will know if you start walking on the other side of the house where I can't see. I will also know if you cancel the charms. You do that and you will run an extra lap, is that clear?"

They all nod and soon they are all running. Harry, used to years of Harry hunting, isn't having much trouble until about seven laps. Severus is also in fairly good shape and keeping up with Harry. Sirius, Remus and Neville are struggling until Sirius quite literally lays down on the ground to catch his breath. "What do you think you are doing?" Kingsley says.

"Cant. Breathe. Need. Water."

Kingsley hands him a cup of water before pulling him off the ground. "Continue. You know better than to stop. You stop again and you will be running until lunch."

Sirius groans and glares at Kingsley. "You're not my superior anymore."

"No but I can tell I will be your trainer for a while. You can't fight anyone when you're in this kind of shape and you know it. Azkaban did not do you any favors. Now get moving." To emphasize his point Kingsley gives Sirius a sharp smack on his backside, right as Harry and Severus jog by. Harry gives Sirius a strange look as he starts running again, but trying to control his breathing he doesn't say anything. He's determined to ask about that later.

When everyone has finished their ten laps, they are told to sit on the ground in a row. "Alright, time for sit ups. Anyone here not know how to do one?"

Nobody responds so Kingsley nods. "Start. I want thirty from each of you." Kingsley sticks their feet to the ground with a sticking charms and starts counting.

After the sit ups they do lunges, push ups and squats before Kingsley finally ends the training. "Very well done everyone. I want you each to do this training every morning. For the running I want at least 2 miles. I will meet with all of you twice a week for a training session and I will know if you haven't done it on your own. As I see that it's becoming easier, I will increase your miles and reps. Harry and Severus, I want 3 miles from each of you. I think it's time for a shower and then lunch."

"Neville, you may use one of the guest rooms on the third floor so you don't have to wait for a bathroom," Harry says as they all start to make their way inside. Harry didn't think it was all that bad. Yes, he knows he'll be sore but he had expected worse. Looking at Sirius, Remus and Neville, he knows they don't agree.

"Sirius, why did Kingsley smack you?" Harry asks before walking into his room.

"He used to do that to James and I if we didn't obey his order immediately. He's about ten years older than us, and I think he saw us as younger brothers. I'm sure you've seen sporting matches where the guys occasionally do that to one another? It's meant in a friendly way. I'm not sure how else to explain it."

"I suppose that makes sense. Well I'm going to shower. I feel disgusting."

When everyone makes their way down to lunch, which Harry notices is highly protein based, he sees the weariness on everyone's face. "How bad is it to nap after a workout?" Harry asks Kingsley.

"The important thing is to not immediately go to sleep. Your heart rate is still up so doing something even remotely active is better. Once you sit or lay down your muscles will start to stiffen up as well, and you'll get that feeling of being unable to move. Severus, do you have any of that cream that helps with tense muscles?"

"Yes, but I have a feeling I'll have to brew more if we are all going to be working out every day. Do you do this workout?"

"Yes, I do it every day before breakfast. It might help to give everyone their own jar. I can brew it if you need me to," Kingsley offers.

"No that's alright. I'll do it right after lunch. Neville you are welcome to stay or I can owl it to you."

"I'll stay for a bit."

"So you call him Neville but Cedric is Mr. Diggory?"

"I just worked out next to him for three hours. I think we're on first name basis. Neville, you may call me Severus during these workouts and when you are here or in our quarters at Hogwarts."

"Thank you. Harry, do you think you can help me with DADA? I'm struggling with some of the spells we're suppose to master by the end of break."

"Sure. Want to go do that now?"

"That's fine. Where can we do that?"

"Let's go outside."

The boys both leave the room and Kingsley looks slightly perturbed. "He does realize he has both his DADA professors here, right?"

"Yes, but don't feel insulted. Most students who know Harry will go to him first. He is great with explaining things and helping students, which is why I let him help in my class. Come on. Disillusion yourself and let's go watch them, you'll see."

Kingsley, Remus and Sirius disillusion themselves and go outside to watch. Harry, who sees the door open and close, knows that they're there but doesn't say anything. They watch Harry calmly guide Neville through the spells, correcting where needed and it doesn't take long for Neville to be able to do all the spells assigned.

"Thank you Harry. I don't know why but the way you explain it just makes sense."

"Don't be afraid to ask for my help at school. Even if I seem busy, I will make time to help you and if I truly can't I will tell you. It's important you learn these and it's easier to keep up than to catch up once behind. Let's go inside and see about that cream. I'm starting to feel my muscles."

The boys walk inside and into the lab, where Severus has just finished the cream. "Here is a jar for you Neville. I'd spread it all over when you get the chance, probably after a nice hot bath to help relax your muscles."

"Thank you. I'm going to head home before I'm too sore to floo. Good luck with your surgery Harry."

"Thank you Neville. I'll see you after break. I doubt we'll have any more training with Kingsley before school starts."

"That's fine, I'll do it on my own. By Severus."

Harry walks into the living room to see Sirius and Remus sprawled on the couches. "I'm going to take a hot bath and then have Dobby apply this cream," Harry says while holding up the jar.

When Harry lays down on his bed in just his pants, Dobby pops in and starts applying the cream all over his arms and legs. "Thank you Dobby, that feels amazing."

"Dobby happy to help."

By the time Dobby is finished, Harry is fast asleep and he quietly leaves the room. He does this to all of them, and when he finishes with Severus who is the last to make his way upstairs, he gives Kingsley a glare. "You is bad," he says before popping out of the room.

Kingsley shakes his head at Dobby before quietly leaving Black Manor. He's not sure he wants to be there to listen to them complain when they wake up.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Harry sleeps through until the next morning, when he is woken up by loud yelling. "Harry! Little brother! What are you doing still asleep!"

Harry looks at his alarm to realize it's seven in the morning. "What are you doing here this early?"

"We are here to hang out like planned!"

"Why this early?"

"It's not that early!"

"Remind me to put a time on the temporary floo password next time. Let me get dressed and I'll meet you for breakfast."

"What is all this yelling about?" Severus says, wearing nothing but silk green pajama pants and looking sleepy. He's not moving in his usual graceful way either.

"Misters Weasley, what are you doing here so early?"

"Severus! You really ought to walk around like that all the time. You'd have women falling all over themselves for you. You don't look so good though."

"Kingsley has started our exercise program yesterday. We are all sore," Harry explains.

"Misters Weasley, please go to the kitchen and inform Dobby that we will be having breakfast a little early. Request extra coffee. Also know that we cast detection charms on everything and if I find so much as a drop of some prank in any of my food or on anything that affects me in any way, you will find that no matter how sore I am, I am never to sore to take a paddle to your backsides. Is that clear?"

"Uhh sir, you can't paddle us."

"Are you sure you want to find out if that's true or not? No pranking today. I absolutely forbid it. And even if I can't paddle your behinds I can come up with dreadful punishments either way."

"Yes sir. We will be going downstairs," Fred says with a wink at Harry.

"I think you just gave them a challenge Severus."

"And I wasn't joking on the punishment."

"Alright, I'm going to get dressed and see what they are up to."

Luckily for Severus, the day goes without incident and no pranks are played. Fred, George and Harry spend most of the day in Harry's lounge and Severus knows they are planning for the upcoming term, but as long as they leave him out of it he's not too concerned.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

Sunday afternoon Harry is pacing the living room until Sirius stops him and makes him sit down. "Calm down Harry. Are you packed?"

"Yes."

"Alright. Your surgery is first thing in the morning and you'll be in the hospital until Wednesday morning. After that we are going to the seaside. Just focus on that, not the surgery. Everything will be fine and we will all be there."

"I know, it's just my first surgery and I can't help but be nervous."

"I fully understand. Now you can't have anything to eat after eight, so I think you should try to eat something. You didn't have much at lunch."

Sirius calls for some food, and soon he is watching Harry eat a sandwich without much thought. He's not even sure if Harry is realizing that he's eating. When Severus and Remus come downstairs with their bags, they look slightly concerned. "He's nervous," Sirius says by way of explanation.

They nod, but as it's time to leave they shrink their bags and put them in their pockets. Sirius checks Harry's bag to make sure he packed everything and summons Harry's toothbrush and puts it in the bag. He shrinks it and puts it in his pocket. "Come on Harry, time to go."

They apparate to the international floo station, and floo to France. From there they apparate to their hotel. They had gotten a three bedroom suite, and it turns out to be the penthouse with gorgeous views of the ocean. Harry looks around in wonder. "This is beautiful."

"Yes it is. Come on, the master suite is yours. Let's get unpacked and settled in for the night. We have to be at the hospital at five in the morning."

Harry nods and walks to his room, Sirius following right behind him with his bag. Sirius helps him unpack and then suggests that Harry go to sleep. Harry, wanting time to go faster so the surgery is over faster, readily agrees and it doesn't take long for the mild sleeping potion Sirius hands him to work. Sirius casts charms over Harry's bed to warn him in case of nightmares, and he joins the others on the balcony. "The views are absolutely stunning from here. And it's not far to apparate to the hospital so it works perfect."

"Is he asleep?"

"Yes he is. I gave him just enough potion to put him to sleep but not enough to keep him asleep or for it to still be in his system in the morning."

"Good. He could do with a good night's rest."

"Alright Lord Potter-Black, this potion is an anesthetic and it will put you to sleep. When you wake up, you'll be able to see much better. At first it might be a little blurry as your vision adjusts so don't panic, alright? Your family will be in the room with you when you wake."

"Bye dad, Severus, Remus. I love you guys."

"Love you too Harry," they all say. Sirius gives him a kiss on the forehead and then Harry is given the potion.

While Harry is in surgery, Sirius is pacing the waiting room while Remus and Severus are fidgeting in their chairs. "One of your sons is in their?" an older lady asks.

"Yes, mine. These are his uncles but they consider him like a son as well. Do you have family in there?"

"My husband. He should be out of surgery but I'm waiting to hear what room they put him in. How old is your son?"

"Fourteen. He plays Quidditch and is very active, but nearly blind without his glasses so this will really help."

"He'll love it then once he's recovered. My granddaughter had this surgery a few months ago and she loves not having glasses anymore. I will likely see you around here as we'll all be visiting our loved ones."

Sirius just smiles at her, or as much as he can at least, and when they call his name he immediately walks over to the nurse. He ignores the shocked look on the older lady's face at the mention of his name, since she likely just realized who's in there having surgery. "Lord Potter-Black is out of surgery and doing well. He'll be in room 310. Someone will come get you and show you to that room as soon as it's ready."

"I'm sorry, did she just say you are Sirius Black? Does that mean it's Harry Potter in there?" The lady asks when Sirius sits down in relief.

"Yes I am, and it's Harry Potter-Black, but yes that's who is in there. I would appreciate if you wouldn't say anything, we don't want the press to find out just yet."

"I won't say anything, but would it be alright for me to meet him?"

"Yes, that will be fine once he's more recovered. I see the nurse waving us over, so if you'll excuse us."

The first thing Sirius notices when he walks into the room is that it is huge. It is very obviously a private room, and there is plenty of seats for all of them. Harry is asleep in the bed, looking peaceful. A nurse is checking his vitals and smiles when they walk in. "Gentlemen. My name is Kate and I'll be Harry's nurse while he's recovering. At night Angela will take over for me. He'll be asleep for another hour or so and then he should start to wake up. He'll be groggy and his vision will be blurry at first but it will improve. Have him press this button when he wakes up, or do it for him, and it will alert me and I'll come back to check on him."

"Thank you Kate," Sirius smiles at her.

They all sit down and wait for Harry to wake up. Sirius is sitting on the side of Harry's bed, holding his hand looking every bit the worried father. When Harry starts to stir they all wait until he opens his eyes before pressing the button for the nurse. "Hey there pup," Sirius says. "I know things are a little blurry but it will get better. We've told the nurse you are waking up."

"Ahh Lord Potter-Black, I see you are awake."

"Call me Harry," Harry groans. "Did it go well?"

"Healer Stephenson is very pleased. He will be in to check on you in a few hours. For now it's important you rest. I have a potion here that will help with any linger pain."

"What potion is it?" Severus asks, standing up and holding his hand for the vial.

"I'm sorry sir, but you are not next of kin."

"Answer his question," Harry says. "He's a Potions Master and I trust him with my life."

"Very well. It's a standard mild strength pain potion. I can't hand you the vial, it's not supposed to leave my hands."

"Then open it and hold it up so I can smell it. There are different variations of pain potions."

Kate does as asked and Severus smells the potion before casting a detection charm. "This is not a pain potion. It has something else in it."

"I got this from our stock of pain potions sir. It was the last one of the batch but I assure you it's fine."

"No it's not, I'm telling you there's something wrong with this."

"Kate, if Severus is suspicious I don't want to take it."

"Very well, I will get another one and have this one tested."

When Kate is out of the room Severus turns to Harry. "I don't want you to take anything from anyone without detection charms and no potions without my approval. Is that understood?"

Harry, recognizing the tone as the 'either obey or be in big trouble' tone, nods. "Yes Severus."

"Good. I don't know what was in that because I can't test it, but there was definitely something."

"I thought this hospital had excellent security."

"It does, but if it's someone who works here there's not much to do. There are anti-poison wards up so it wasn't poison, but it could be any number of harmful things. There are a lot of potions that would seriously hurt you with the anesthetic still in your system, and any number of ingredients that make even a basic potion dangerous. That also means that at least two us will stay here at all times, and I will not leave at all."

"Thank you for being here. My vision is already getting slightly better. I can't wait for it to be fully normal."

"I would like to apologize," Kate says as she walks back into the room. "A quick test showed that it was indeed not a normal pain potion. They are trying to figure out what ingredient was added and why. I have a new potion here, straight from the lab. Mr. Snape, I have permission to have you test anything we hand out just in case. We understand the need for extra security measures, and the ward is on lockdown with nobody who isn't taking care of a patient is allowed in or out."

Severus takes the vial and sniffs it, before swirling it around. "This is right. Go ahead and take it Harry," Severus says while handing Harry the vial.

"How is your vision Harry?" Kate asks.

"Getting better. I can see colors now and outlines of things as opposed to just blurred shapes."

"Excellent. You should be able to fully see within an hour or so. The reason you have to stay here is because we have special lights for those recovering from eye surgery. Regular lights and the outside sun could potentially hurt your eyes the first 24 hours. We prefer to keep patients a little bit longer just to be on the safe side."

"So I could leave here tomorrow if I wanted to?"

"Yes, but we don't recommend it. The healer will decide when it's fine for you to leave."

Kate leaves, and soon she returns with food for all of them. She flinches slightly when they all aim detection charms at everything before she's even sat the tray down on the table. "I take it this is not entirely uncommon for you all?"

"Sadly it's not."

"I will leave you to eat. Healer Stephenson should be here soon."

Harry isn't quite done eating yet when the healer comes in, but he puts down his fork and smiles. "I can see everything so clearly!"

"That is excellent Lord Potter-Black. I'm going to run a basic diagnostic which will tell me if you have full vision yet or not."

Once Healer Stephenson is done with his diagnostic, he smiles. "You're at about 95%. Now I understand you want to leave tomorrow?"

"I don't want to be here any longer than necessary. If I can recover at my hotel that would be great."

"We have sunglasses you can wear once you leave. If that is what you truly want you may leave just before lunch tomorrow. But if you want me to approve that I expect excellent behavior and compliance with the nurses until then, alright?"

"I was going to do that anyway."

"Good. I like to specify that as sometimes patients can become difficult, even though I have doubt your father would say something should you become one of those. I will see you all tomorrow just before lunch."

"I don't like him" Harry says the moment the healer is out of the room. "He just assumed I'd cause trouble."

"I don't think he meant it that way but I agree his personality skills aren't great," Sirius says with a soft smile. "However, he's the best there is when it comes to eye surgery so we'll put up with it. I agree that recovering at the hotel will be much nicer."

"So we're here until Friday, right?"

"Yes, so we'll have lots of time to spend at the beach and around town. It will be a nice little vacation."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"You are to wear these sunglasses at all times unless asleep. If you start to notice your vision weakening or any pain in your eyes, you will come back here immediately."

"Yes Healer Stephenson. So I'm free to go?"

"Yes Lord Potter-Black, you are."

As soon as the healer is out of the room Harry's jumps off the bed and waves his hand to switch from hospital gown to robes. "I'm ready."

Harry says goodbye to Kate, who promises to let them know if she finds out anything about the potion, and they calmly walk out of the hospital. The second they are outside reporters crowd around them, as apparently the news has leaked. Harry grabs Severus and they quickly apparate away, glad that they are staying in a small town not known to many wizards. In their hotel room Harry lays down on the couch with a sigh. "This is much nicer than the hospital."

"I'm sure they're glad to see you go, considering you caused all the extra security and work for them."

"They should have done that to begin with. Oh well, it ended up fine. So tomorrow we go to the beach, right?"

"Yes."

"Excellent. I've never been to the beach."

"Well this is a good place for a first time beach trip. Now you should sit up so you can have lunch and then you need to go lay down for a nap."

"A nap? I'm not three years old you know."

"No but you are still recovering so you are taking a nap. Now have some lunch."

Harry, knowing that it's just Sirius' overprotective side coming out, sighs before doing as he's told.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"I love the ocean!" Harry yells from the water. Sirius has taken several pictures, mostly of Harry's excitement but also of all of them on the beach. Harry's excitement that morning had gotten everyone out of bed fairly early and now Harry was splashing around in the ocean like a small child. "Come in here Sirius!"

Sirius puts down the camera and runs to the water to tackle Harry. They both come up spluttering from the salty water, but laughing all the same. Remus is standing on the edge with the camera, grinning. Severus hesitantly joins them in the water, and when Harry jumps on his back Remus manages to get pictures of it all, including when Severus shakes Harry off his back and starts to chase him across the beach and back into the water, where he finally catches him. Severus raises Harry high up in the air, amid loud squeals that have everyone looking their way, before dropping him in the water.

Everyone is laughing at their antics, and both Remus and Sirius are amazed at how playful Severus is being. They have the feeling that Severus hasn't had very many seashore outings either. Remus puts the camera away and secretly wards all their belongings before joining the others in the water. They play around for a good two hours before taking a break, at which point Remus brings out the sunscreen and starts applying it on Harry despite his protests. "You'll be a lobster if you don't use this, so stand still."

They eat lunch on the boulevard, watching everyone on the beach. They decide to walk through town that afternoon and they head back to the hotel to change into more appropriate clothing. It's an exhausted but happy Harry who falls asleep that night, thinking about how lucky he is to have guardians like Sirius, Severus and Remus.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"Today we're going to eat out for breakfast," Sirius announces the next morning.

Everyone readily agrees and they head down to a small restaurant they saw the day before. When they walk in Harry immediately sees Viktor, seated at a large table by the window. "Viktor!"

"Harry. It's good to see you and you look amazing without glasses!"

"What are you doing here?"

"Well since you didn't have time to come to Bulgaria, I brought my parents here. We don't leave until tomorrow morning."

"Introduce me to them. I'm so happy to see you, I felt awful for not being able to visit."

"I knew how important this surgery was for you. Mom, Dad, this is Harry and his guardians Sirius, Remus and Severus."

"Nice to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Krum," Harry says while politely shaking their hands.

"It's nice to finally meet the young man Viktor has told us so much about. Let's all have a seat and enjoy breakfast together," Mr. Krum says.

Harry and Viktor catch up on their vacations while the adults listen to their conversation. Mr. and Mrs. Krum can see how well they get along and how easy their interaction is, and they understand why Viktor chose Hogwarts over Durmstrang when it came down to it, and why he refuses to break up with Harry just because Karkarof wanted it.

They spend a long day together on the beach, with Harry and Viktor doing their own thing for the most part. That evening after dinner they say goodbye, knowing they'll see each other in a few days.

The remainder of Harry's break isn't nearly as exciting as the beginning was. Once they get home from France, Harry finishes his homework and studies ahead a little bit, knowing he'll find out about the Third Task on Monday and wanting to be prepared. He starts up his exercise routine again, along with his guardians, wanting to be prepared for anything that might come his way.

AN: This has to be one of the longest chapters I've ever written! 47 pages! I hope you enjoyed reading this, and I hope to have the next chapter up by the end of the weekend.


	42. Chapter 42

AN: The long awaited Third Task chapter is here :) Enjoy!

Chapter 42

"Champions. Before you you see a maze. In two weeks, you will enter this maze in the order of the current standings, which is Harry first, Viktor and Cedric tied for second, and Fleur last. At the center of the maze will be the Triwizard Cup. The person to grab this cup first, will win. You may encounter many things within the maze, so be prepared. Good luck!"

Harry turns around to look at Sirius who is standing behind him before glancing at Viktor and Cedric. They both have Minerva standing by them. They walk over to where they are standing without anyone saying anything. "Well, that tells us absolutely nothing," Harry finally says.

"I'm going back to the castle."

"Hold on Harry, I'll walk with you," Sirius says.

"We'll all walk with you. It's almost curfew anyway."

Harry and Sirius walk slightly behind everyone else. "I want you in our quarters after dinner every night Harry. You can finish homework and when done with that we'll prepare for the task. I know you well enough to know you'll be doing that on your own, and I'd rather supervise. To be honest Remus, Severus and I have been going back and forth on whether or not to make you move in with us. We're worried you'll overdo it."

"Please don't make me. I'll join you guys every night until curfew but I want to spend time with my friends after curfew."

"Alright, but if you start skipping meals or not sleeping enough we'll intervene. Sound fair?" 

"Yes dad. And I'll keep up the exercise in the morning as well. Kingsley says he's joining us tomorrow morning. I really hope he's happy with the progress I've made."

"I'm sure he will. You've been doing it every day except when we were in France. I haven't done a single day except our first workout."

"You're going to be in trouble."

"Yes, I will be. Trust me, I've been through this before. He will know and a smack on my backside will be the least of my worries."

"What will he do?"

"Disobeying him gets him to work you even harder. I'll be lucky to be standing by the time he's done with me. Especially since he's asked me several times how my workouts are going and I've told him they're fine. I don't think he's believed me though, I never was able to lie to him."

"But all he'll do is work you harder?"

"And probably supervise my workouts every day for a while. I wasn't joking when I said it's better to obey him. I don't know why I decided to test him on it, just like I did last time."

"Well, I don't envy you. I'm going to my room, I'll see you bright and early."

"Goodnight Harry."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright everyone, start your run. Not you Sirius, I have something different in mind."

Harry gives Sirius a sympathetic look before starting his run. When he returns from his run, Sirius is looking slightly subdued, and out of breath. "Alright, time for the rest of the workout. Anyone who wants to work out with Sirius and I every morning is welcome to join us at six in the morning."

They all continue working out, and nobody fails to notice all the extra Sirius is doing. When they are done they head inside for a shower, Sirius having slight difficulty making it up the stairs. Remus just shakes his head. "You deserved that Sirius. I've told you every morning that you should join me and workout. You knew what would happen."

"I know, no need to remind me. And now I'll be working out with Kingsley every day."

"How bad was it while we were running?"

"I don't want to discuss it."

"Very well. Just let it be a reminder next time you want to sleep through your alarm."

"yeah yeah. Let's make it through this day first."

Sirius does make it through the day, even if he isn't moving very fast. When Harry arrives after dinner, he grins when he sees Sirius on the couch. "You look tired dad. Wonder why that is?"

"Don't even start, I'm still quite capable of hexing you. Why are you not sore?"

"Because I've been working out every day. I can actually do more than I used to be able to."

"Well good for you. Do you have homework?"

"Yes but not much. I'm going to do it now and then practice some more spells."

"Alright. I'll be in as soon as I find the strength to move."

"Don't worry about it, I'm getting my books and coming back out here. I just have reading."

"Good. I'd hate to have to move."

"You should get Remus to put some of that cream on your arms and legs. You'll probably feel better."

"I know but he is supervising a detention. Once he's back, that is exactly what he'll be doing."

The moment Remus walks into the common room, he pulls Sirius off the couch. "Alright Sirius, let's go take care of those muscles. Harry, when it's curfew we expect you in either our quarters or your dorm."

"Alright Remus."

"Hi there Harry," Kingsley says, taking a seat in an armchair. "You doing homework or preparing for the task?"

"Homework. Sirius was out here but Remus just took him into our rooms to get rid of sore muscles. You really did a number on him."

Kingsley just smiles. "He knew what to expect. He's been through this before. He really does need to get in better shape, and I don't think he'll miss another workout which was the goal."

"I'm going back to the dorm. I'll see you tomorrow Kingsley."

"Goodnight Harry. Don't practice too hard."

Harry just smiles, and Kingsley knows that Harry will practice as much as he can and forego sleep if needed.

This turns out to be very true, as Harry is exhausted by the end of the week and it's noticeable. In Potions on Friday, Severus asks Harry to stay behind (or more like orders him to stay behind for detention for appearances sake), and once they are alone he looks at him in concern. "How much or how little have you been sleeping Harry? You could barely keep your eyes open in class and it's a wonder you didn't blow up your cauldron."

"I'm sorry."

"That's not what I asked. I'm not angry, I'm concerned."

"Two to three hours a night maybe. I've been practicing my spells most evenings and time just gets away from me."

"I'd like you to spend the weekend in our quarters. It's not punishment, and if you want to stay in your dorm you may but if you choose that we will come check on you to make sure you go to sleep at a reasonable hour. Not sleeping is dangerous Harry, and while spell knowledge is important, if you are exhausted your responses are slower and you'll be at a disadvantage. Do you have a lot of homework this weekend?" 

"No, I actually don't have any. I think all our teachers are going easy on us because they know I have the task next week."

"Then please come to our quarters and we'll practice for the Third Task. You'll be as prepared as you can be by the end of the weekend and then you can focus on being well rested next week before the task, alright?"

"I suppose. I want to spend time with you guys but also with my friends."

Severus pulls Harry into a hug, having a feeling the boy needs it. "Harry, are you afraid something is going to happen?" 

"Of course I am. We all know something is going to happen, and this might be the last time I get to spend time with some if I end up in danger or one of you does."

"Harry, we will stay as safe as possible. You can't live in fear like that. Come on, you're going with me and you're going to sleep until dinner."

"But I have class." 

"Not anymore. It's DADA and I'll send Kingsley a note. I'm going to put you to bed in my quarters and ensure you get some rest. You are falling asleep standing here talking to me."

Harry sighs but follows Severus anyway. He knows Severus is right, and he knows he needs sleep. He puts on his pajamas and the moment he's in bed and Severus has left the room, he is asleep.

Harry ends up being so exhausted that he doesn't wake up until just before breakfast Saturday morning. When he walks into the kitchen, Severus is there reading the paper and smiles at him. "Well rested I presume?"

"Yes. Sorry for imposing on you like that."

"Harry, that room is yours. You are welcome there anytime and you clearly needed it. Have you decided where you'll be spending the night tonight?"

"I'm going to stay here. My friends will understand, and Hermione will probably be happy because she's noticed my lack of sleep."

"Sounds good. Why don't you head down to breakfast and meet us in the Room of Requirement afterwards?"

Harry nods and leaves, informing his friends where he's been when he gets to the Great Hall. Hermione, Cedric, Neville and Viktor all nod in approval when he mention having been forced to bed after class yesterday. "You needed sleep Harry," Neville says.

"Mr. Potter-Black, I got the note from Professor Snape yesterday. I just want to let you know that you did not miss any assignments. If you can produce an adequate Reducto, you won't have any homework for next class," Kingsley says from behind him.

Harry points his wand at an empty pitcher, casts Reducto and then quickly casts a Reparo to fix it. "Very well done Mr. Potter-Black, both on blasting it to pieces and repairing it. I will give you full marks for the exercise. Reparo is the object of next class, and as you have already mastered it, I would appreciate your assistance during the practical."

"I'd be glad to help professor."

"Thank you Mr. Potter-Black. I'll let you get back to your breakfast."

"I'll be staying with Sirius tonight, and we are preparing for the Third task all day today and tomorrow so I likely won't see you guys until Sunday night," Harry says. "That way I'm prepared for the Task and can spend this coming week focusing on school and getting enough rest. They were worried about me not sleeping."

"We were all worried Harry, but we knew your guardians would handle it," Viktor says. "And if they hadn't we had already planned to force you to bed last night. We figured out that Cedric as Head Boy has access to your room, and he was going to stick you to your bed until you'd gotten enough sleep. We have no problem doing that this coming week as well if we suspect you aren't sleeping."

"I thought only professors have access to my room?"

"We thought so as well, but Cedric tried the other day because he needed something from Alex, and it turns out he can enter your room using the Head Boy password that works on all common rooms."

"Interesting. I'll keep that in mind."

"You should. I'll be practicing for the Task this weekend and I know Cedric is as well so we'll all be busy. I'm glad you have help."

"It's not fair that you don't."

"Filius has offered his assistance as my Head of House. He will be helping me some, so I'm not completely alone."

"Good. I need to get going, I notice my guardians have already left. I'll see you all later, I don't know if I'll be down for lunch."

Harry gets to the Room of Requirement and notices the dummies set up in the room, along with all three of his guardians and Kingsley. "Hi Kingsley, wasn't expecting you here." 

"Sirius told me what you were doing and I decided to help. You are plenty prepared for the Task, we are going to focus on what might possibly happen and preparing you for that. Those dummies are dueling dummies. How about you show us what you can do against them."

Harry nods and moves over to the area with the dummies. He feels the protective barriers going up behind him, which will absorb the spells that don't hit him so they don't hit someone else in the room. Soon he is dueling against all four dummies, holding his own very well. He notices when the difficulty increases and he has a feeling one of his guardians did that. He gets hit with a few different spells, but in the end he defeats all four dummies with parseltongue spells they can't undo.

"Very well done Harry!" Sirius says. "Come over here and we'll heal you. We gave the dummies wandless abilities, but they weren't able to undo the incarcerous. How come?" 

"I used parselmagic. You can only undo that with parseltongue. It will work as long as Voldemort isn't there or doesn't notice what he needs to do."

"Voldemort never used parselmagic in his fighting, so I doubt he knows about it," Kingsley says thoughtfully.

"I was trying to think back to my few encounters with him and I agree I've never heard him use it," Sirius says with a nod.

"I'm going to try to limit my use of it in front of him, because that would be giving away something he apparently doesn't know, but I'll use it if need be." 

"That's a good idea, but him finding out is better than not using it at all and putting yourself in danger."

"I know. So out of curiosity," Harry says before hopping on a table so he can be healed. "If I was in trouble with Death Eaters, and I did something stupid that puts me in more danger, would I get in trouble for that afterwards?"

"No, you wouldn't be if you managed to get out alive. If you died I'd bring you back so I could kill you," Sirius says. "But if you did something stupid that landed you in Death Eater hands when you weren't to begin with, that would get you in trouble. The sore backside kind of trouble."

"Good to know. Not that I'm planning on doing anything stupid, but it's good to know where I stand."

"Harry, when you're in danger you do whatever you can to get out without thinking about consequences from us. You only think about consequences when you are the one who put yourself in a dangerous position to begin with. We trust your judgment when in danger, and when the only focus should be on staying alive."

"Thanks dad. If something happens, can you promise to formulate a plan before rushing in? I know you, and I know you are just like me when someone I love is in danger. Please don't rush in. It would increase the chance of you getting hurt or killed and I can't lose you."

"I promise Harry. Remus, Sirius and Kingsley have all made me promise the same thing. You would all kill me if I rushed in without thinking."

"I wouldn't kill you," Kingsley says sweetly. "But you'd wish I had."

"And you know the consequence you'd get from me," Remus says with a stern look. "I would make sure you get it before Kingsley kills you."

"I would just know it's your Gryffindor side coming out and shake my head at your foolishness. Then watch with a smile while Kingsley and Remus kill you."

Harry laughs. "Severus, I would join you in that."

"I can feel the love in this room. Alright Harry, you're all healed up. How about another round?"

"Sure, but let's make it a little bit harder this time."

Sirius nods and spells the dummies before Harry takes his place again. This time it takes longer to defeat them all, and he doesn't quite manage with the last one before Sirius stops them.

"You didn't get the last one yet but you've been at it for a while and it's time for a break. That was at a hard level Harry, you did very well."

Harry, trying to catch his breath, sits down on the table to heal the few small bruises. "Thanks. I need a break. The exercise is helping but it's still exhausting."

"Which is normal. Alright, those bruises are done. I didn't see you get hit with anything else."

"I wasn't. Is it time for lunch?"

"It is, and I've already let Dobby know we'll be eating up here. It should be here soon."

After lunch they duel each other, during which they can stop and show Harry certain things he could have done better or could have avoided, and some new tricks. Harry feels much better about what the next week will bring than he did at the beginning of the day, and he tells his guardians and Kingsley as much.

"Harry, you will do well no matter what you encounter. Keep in mind that if something happens, help will come quickly as you'll have your tracking bracelet which can't be removed. Even if you have to talk to whomever it is to slow them down, do so. Voldemort was always one for dragging things out and talking a lot before trying to kill someone which will work to your advantage," Severus says.

"The entire Auror corps is on standby that night Harry," Kingsley says. "We all know something might happen. Just focus on staying safe and trust that help is on the way."

"I will. What will we be doing tomorrow?"

"We'll be going over all the spells for all the animals and creatures you might encounter. Also, Severus has made you a potions belt you will be wearing under your robes with common counter potions to most poisons, include an Acromantula bite. Consider they live in the Forbidden Forest, as you know, it is likely there will be one or more in the maze. In fact, it's likely that any creatures used come from the Forest, simply because it's the easiest and they don't have to worry much about transport. You will be learning how to use the potions belt quickly and easily. It even has a few common healing potions in it which will be useful for minor injuries. Nobody can remove a potion from the belt except you, and nobody can remove the belt from you. All the vials are charmed against breaking, so it's all safe from tampering or removal."

"Wow, thank you Severus. You didn't have to go through that trouble."

"It's not trouble, and yes I did. You are like a son to me Harry and my skills are in potions, therefore I will do what I can to help protect you using potions. During the last war I had a belt like that on me at all times, and I've made one for Sirius and Remus as well. I know you see me as an uncle, and that's fine, because even if you were my nephew I'd still protect you with everything I can. Do you understand?"

"Yes I do. Thank you, that means a lot. You've all put so much time and effort into preparing me for this Tournament and for what might happen at some point in time. It seems like your whole lives revolve around me." 

"Harry, you are worth every second," Sirius says, kneeling in front of Harry to get to eye level and holding both his arms. "We aren't just working for you, we are working for the family we've created. We are working to keep everyone safe and as happy as possible. We are preparing so hard because we don't know what might come. We might be wrong and a war will not break out. But we can't risk not being prepared. Remus, Severus and I are doing the exercise in the mornings because we too need to prepare, you aren't the only one. We enjoy dueling you in training because it also trains us. Don't ever think you are not worth it, because you are worth much more. And if Merlin forbid something happens next week, I want you to never forget that you are loved by all of us and by all your friends. Don't ever doubt that, and don't doubt that no matter how far apart we may be, we will always be with you in spirit if we can't be in person. Do I need to have your write that down 500 times to get you to believe it or are you good?"

"I'm good, I don't need to write it down."

"Good, because I was really hoping for some Exploding Snap or Gobstone tonight. Let's all head down to our quarters since we are done here and it's already after dinner time. We can eat and then have a fun family night."

"I'll see you guys tomorrow," Kingsley says.

"I don't think so," Harry says. "You are now part of this family whether you want to be or not. That means you come to family night. Nobody gets to skip family night."

Kingsley looks at Harry in surprise. "I'm family?"

"After everything you've already done for me in the short time I've known you, yes you are. Besides, you were like family to James and Sirius and that makes you my family. The fact that James told you the part of the prophecy he knew indicates that you were family to him. So I expect to see you at family night."

Kingsley grabs Harry into a hug and squeezes tight before letting go. "I should wash your mouth out for talking to me like that, but you have no idea how happy you just made me. I'll be at family night, I just need to change first."

"Harry, did you know that Kingsley is the only left in his family since the last war?" Sirius asks after Kingsley has left.

"No, I did not. That doesn't change anything." 

"No, but now you know how much what you said means to him. He's been alone for thirteen years, and to have someone tell him that he's family means more than you can imagine."

"No it doesn't. I can imagine it very well. I didn't have family for over ten years, remember? I know what it means to be alone in this world. I didn't know he was alone, but I've started to care about him so it doesn't change anything. None of us should ever be alone."

"I suppose that's true. Now go shower and then put on your pajamas. We aren't going anywhere tonight so you might as well get comfortable."

"I'm going to my bathroom in Severus' quarters so you guys can both shower here. I'll be back."

Severus looks slightly bemused. "Apparently I don't get a say in this?"

"He's a teenage boy and you've given him free access to your rooms. What do you expect? He has his own bathroom?"

"Yes, we noticed the other day the castle added another bathroom that's connected to his bedroom. In times like this it's useful. I suppose I'll go shower as well."

The evening is spent playing games, eating biscuits and drinking hot chocolate. They all have a good time, and when Sirius decides it's time for Harry to go to bed he protests loudly. "Ahh come on Sirius, we were just having fun!"

"And we'll have plenty more fun a different day, but right now it's time for you to go to bed. It's close to midnight."

"But I'm not tired and I want to stay out here."

"Then you can stare at your ceiling, either way you're going to bed. Now stop whining before I do something about it. I'll be in in a minute to say goodnight."

Harry leaves for his room, but he doesn't look happy about it. Kingsley gives Sirius a questioning look. "He really still needs a bedtime?"

"Yes, he does, because if we don't send him to bed he'd be up until all hours of the night. And if Harry doesn't get enough sleep he becomes incredibly bad tempered the next day. He'll be fine when I go in there."

"I remember in Slytherin all students fourth year and under had a bedtime. Do other houses have that?"

Remus shakes his head. "I don't think so. Slytherin still has that, but they're the only ones. I've wondered before if it's a good idea for all houses but it's up to the Head of House. I might consider it for Gryffindor."

Sirius has made his way into Harry's room in the meantime and sits down on the side of the bed, pulling the blankets up under Harry's chin. Harry turns his head away, but Sirius reaches over and turns it back. "What's wrong?"

"I hate when you send me to bed like a little kid."

"You might not be a little kid but you are still a child, no matter how much the world wants you to believe that you aren't. And you need sleep, you know that. You also know how cranky you get when you don't sleep enough."

"I still don't like it."

"And I'll still continue doing it. I'm looking out for you kiddo and if making you upset with me over something as silly as sending you to bed at midnight keeps you from snapping at everyone tomorrow, it is worth it."

Harry just pouts, causing Sirius to smile softly. "I'll let you pout by yourself and we'll see you in the morning." Sirius stands up and kisses the top of Harry's head before leaving the room.

"He's pouting in the dark by himself," he announces to the group still in the living room. "I have to admit I'm tired and will be going to bed myself. Good night everyone."

The next day Harry and Severus work on the potions belt. By the end of the day, Harry can blindly grab the correct potion in a moment's notice and Severus is finally satisfied. He makes his way back to the Ravenclaw common room, and when he sees Viktor and Alex on the couch he falls down next to them. "Hi Harry. Done with training?"

"Yes, finally. I'm exhausted."

"I just walked in myself. Now it's time to relax."

"Isn't it about time for dinner?"

"Yes it is. I suppose we should head down there."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

An hour before the Third Task Harry is walking down to the Quidditch pitch with Sirius, Remus and Kingsley. He's nervous, but he's as prepared as he can be. He has just said bye to Severus, and Severus had pulled him into a big hug before giving him a stern warning to be careful and remember his training.

Now they were waiting while the stands filled with spectators, and the excitement was in the air. Viktor, Cedric and Harry shared nervous looks, each of them aware that there was no turning back and that there was no guarantee they'd all make it out alive.

"Champions! We are about to start the Third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament. Should you run into trouble while in the maze, you just need to send up red sparks and you will be rescued immediately. Any questions before we start?"

They all shake their heads. "Very well. You have five minutes to say goodbye to your family and then we are starting."

Harry immediately gives Kingsley and Remus hugs, before Sirius pulls him into an embrace. "Be careful pup. Don't forget about Lightning if you need him. We are here and we are watching. You will do great, but winning isn't as important as staying alive. I love you son."

"I will be careful. I love you dad, and I'll see you soon."

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament. In a moment, our Champions will enter the maze. Their goal is to reach the center of the maze and grab the Triwizard Cup, which will bring them back here immediately. Should a Champion need rescuing from what they might find in the maze, they will send up red sparks. As he is first in standings, Harry will enter the maze first, followed by Cedric and Viktor who are tied for second, and lastly Fleur. The Champions do not know what they might encounter, but we can follow their progress on these four large screens. Each will display one of the Champions' fight through the maze. Champions, are you ready?"

They all nod nervously. "Very well. Mr. Potter-Black, you may enter the maze!"

The moment Harry enters the maze, the wall closes behind him and the sound of the crowd disappears. He starts walking, hoping not to encounter too much. Using the position of the fading sun to help guide him in the right direction, he continues taking turns when he thinks they need taking. He feels like he's been in the maze for a good twenty minutes and he still hasn't encountered anything. This is worrying him more than if he had encountered a lot along the way. He suddenly comes to a halt when he sees a Blast-Ended Skrewt in the path in front of him. He casts a quick Stupefy and Incendio at it, setting it on fire. When he thinks it's burned enough, he cast Aguamenti to put out the fire to notice in satisfaction that there's nothing left but ash. He quickly walks past the spot, not wanting to see what else might be there. He hears a scream from somewhere, and then sees red sparks going up in the sky. Not knowing who is in trouble, he worries that it's Viktor or Cedric. "Fleur Delaceur has sent up red sparks and is safely retrieved. She is no longer a Champion in the Tournament." Harry hears announced. He wonders why they are not telling them anything except if someone has sent up red sparks. Maybe so he knows what his chances are?

Harry continues walking until suddenly he feels cold and all happiness leaves his body. When he turns the corner he is assaulted by a dementor almost immediately. He thinks about the memory of playing in the ocean with his guardians and casts the strongest Patronus he can. To his surprise, four shapes come out of his wand and he stares at them in shock. While they keep the dementor away from him, it doesn't make it disappear which is when Harry realizes it's a boggart, not a dementor. He tells his Patroni to stay, before focusing on the dementor and wordlessly casting Riddikulus. The dementor changes into a clown with Severus' face (with of course a big red nose), and suddenly Harry can hear the crowd laughing and the boggart disappears. Harry grins when he realizes that everyone in the stands, including Severus, has just seen what he changed the boggart into. He has no doubt that if Severus was there he'd have already been swatted.

Harry turns to his Patroni. He still has Prongs, but now he also has a large dog, a wolf and a raven. He smiles as he sees his father and guardians represented. "Can you guys help me find the center of the maze?"

They all disappear except for the raven, which starts flying in the opposite direction Harry was going in. He decides to follow it, knowing his Patronus would not lead him astray. He next encounters a snake, but after speaking to it in parseltongue it moves out of the way, impressed to have encountered a speaker. Harry continues to follow the raven, which he has already nicknamed Shadow. He hears a rustling noise and suddenly the sides of the maze start closing in. He starts running, hoping to get to the end in time.

He barely makes it and stops to catch his breath. He sees Viktor coming around the corner and immediately runs to him. "Viktor! You're hurt!"

"Damn Acromantula. I have the antivenin but didn't take it on time."

"Viktor, you can become permanently paralyzed. You have to get help."

"If I do that, I lose."

"Is the Tournament more important than being able to walk, or more importantly fly?"

Viktor looks at Harry and sighs. "I hadn't even thought about flying. I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't fly. I'm going to get help. That means it's just you and Cedric. It's a Hogwarts win regardless so be careful. I want you back in one piece."

"I will be," Harry says before leaning towards Viktor as if to give him a kiss on the cheek, which he's doing for the audience. "The audience is watching us so play along. Find Sirius, stay with him once you're healed. If something happens, he'll tell you how to help and I know you'll want to."

"I will. Thank you for talking sense into me."

Viktor sends up red sparks and a second later Severus pops in, nods at Harry and pops back out with Viktor. Harry has a feeling the wards have been altered to allow certain professors to apparate in case a Champion needs rescued.

He continues following Shadow, and soon he sees a bright glow in the distance. He knows it's the Cup, and he's surprised he's found it relatively easily. He had imagined the maze being harder. He starts running towards it, wanting it to end and almost misses the Acromantula coming at him. He stupefies it, and because it's so small it immediately falls to the ground. Harry continues running, and sees Cedric coming from the other way. Suddenly a huge Acromantula attacks Cedric and he falls to the ground. Harry rushes over and hands him some of the antivenin, pouring it in his mouth.

"Antivenin. Swallow."

Cedric swallows and nods gratefully. "I'm getting feeling back in my leg. Thank you. Watch out!"

Harry turns and blasts a strong Stupefy at the Acromantula which shoots it to the other side of the clearing but doesn't knock it out. "Right on time. Let's cast together and see if we can get it that way. This is definitely one of the bigger children of Aragog."

Harry helps Cedric stand right as the Acromantula starts making its way back. "On the count of three. One. Two. Three!"

The dual cast turns out to be enough and they both sigh in relief. "I think there might be more of them around," Harry says. "You should take the cup. You would have been there first if it hadn't been for that blasted thing. You deserve it, I wasn't even supposed to be a Champion."

"No Harry, you would have won if you hadn't stopped to help me. Take it."

"I can't Cedric. You deserve it. Take the blasted cup. I don't need the money and I don't need the added fame and publicity."

"How about we take it together. Make it a dual Hogwarts win."

"Only if you agree to accept my half of the winnings as well."

Cedric glares at Harry, but seeing the stubborn look on Harry's face and knowing the money would pay for his Auror training, he nods. "Fine. On the count of three. One, two, three!"

Suddenly Harry feels a sickening tug in his belly. When they land he looks around, glad to see Cedric, but confused by the cemetery they appear to be in. "Ahh Mr. Potter. I see you have brought a friend. How nice of you to join us."

Harry turns around to see what looks to be a half human being, held by none other than Peter Pettigrew. He ducks behind the gravestone he is by and drags Cedric down with him, and they share a look, knowing they are in deep trouble.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Where did they go? Where is he? I knew something would happen!" Sirius yells. Several professors are gathered in the clearing in front of the maze, trying to determine what happened.

"Sirius, calm down. There's a tracking on Harry and Cedric both. You can get us there if we all apparate together. When we get there, take cover and lets see what we have before formulating a plan. Sirius, Remus, Severus, Kingsley, Filius, Septima and myself will be going. The Aurors will be summoned as soon as we get there so they know the coordinates to apparate to. All the rest of you, stay here and protect Hogwarts. The Aurors here today will remain here. The second we apparate out the castle and grounds will be on lockdown. Nobody can get in or out until myself or Filius as Deputy Headmaster returns. That means you can't even walk, swim or fly in or out. Escort everyone to the Great Hall and provide refreshments," Minerva says. "Normally the Headmistress and Deputy don't leave at the same time, which means something serious is going on when we do. That's why that protection is in place and why we are both leaving. Hogwarts needs that protection at the moment."

The group going to Harry's rescue grab hands, Sirius focusses on Harry's location and they all apparate. When they look around and take cover, they see a cemetery just in the distance, and what appears to be a large gathering of black cloaks. "Death Eaters," Severus says.

"So we are in the right place. The Aurors have been summoned. When they get here, I'll be in charge," Kingsley says. "I'll be the most senior Auror on location. We will surround this area. Our goal is not to capture. It is to rescue Harry and Cedric and get the hell out. The Aurors will focus on capturing the Death Eaters and whatever form of Voldemort is here. Fight to keep yourselves safe to whatever extent necessary. I mean that. If you have to Reducto someone to stay safe, do so. Any questions?"

They all shake their heads and soon Aurors start popping in. They are given instructions and start surrounding the area. When all the Aurors are there, Kingsley casts anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards. "Get back to this area right here to apparate out. The only working portkey is the Cup, which should work to take Harry and Cedric back to the castle if you can't get to here. Filius or Minerva should be with you when you apparate or portkey back, otherwise you can't get through the wards at Hogwarts." 

"If you can't get Filius or Minerva safely, you may apparate to Black Manor. Simply focus on that and Harry's magic will apparate you to the right place. There are full potions stores there which should have anything you need," Severus says.

Everyone nods and they spread out. What they see when they get closer is frightening, as Harry is standing in front of what appears to be Voldemort in what appears to be the start of a duel, blood dripping down his arm.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright Cedric, we need a plan. The Portkey will likely take us back to the school, but we're too far away. I'm going to try summoning it, but I'm not sure if it will work. Stay down."

Harry tries summoning, but it doesn't work. "Alright. Plan B. You get to safety, I'll try to hold them off. It's me they want."

"No Harry. I will not let you sacrifice yourself. We both attack as soon as we get out from behind this gravestone."

"Fine. On three. One. Two. Three."

The moment Cedric and Harry appear from behind the gravestone they are attacked by spellfire. When Harry sees Cedric get hit by something and go down, he is distracted for a moment and apprehended. "Don't kill him!" Pettigrew yells. "Master needs him!"

Harry is tied to a large statue, unable to get free. He still has his wand since it has the auto-recall on his holster, and the holster can't be removed by anyone. "Harry Potter," The strange creature says. "Finally we meet again."

"Voldemort. You really need a Tournament to finally get me? You'd think it was easier than that."

"This is much better. Everyone is elsewhere occupied. Now, let's get this started. This ritual will bring me back to a full body. And when that happens, you and I will duel and I will kill you once and for all."

"We'll see about that."

"You'll find out soon that messing with me isn't a good idea. Wormtail, get his blood."

Pettigrew conjures a large knife and proceeds to slice Harry's arm, while he tries to hide his wince. Harry watches while Pettigrew puts the blood in the large cauldron, before levitating a bone from a grave into the cauldron. When Pettigrew cuts off his own hand and puts it in the cauldron, Harry looks at him like he's insane. "You really are crazy. Who follows a man who requires you to literally cut off your own hand?"

"Quiet Potter!"

What Harry sees next makes him wishes something goes wrong. Pettigrew drops Voldemort into the cauldron and Harry holds his breath, waiting for him to die. Unfortunately, when Voldemort steps out of the cauldron in what could pass as an adult body he sighs. "I was hoping you'd die. Unfortunately your little ritual worked."

"Wormtail, free Mr. Potter. We have some business to attend."

"You know, it's Lord Potter-Black. You really should fire whoever informs you of the goings on in the Wizarding World."

"I will make sure to do so as I was not informed of this." Harry sees him glare at a masked Death Eater with long white hair and he grins. "If it's Malfoy, please let me watch you punish him. I would thoroughly enjoy that."

"I'm sure you would. Very well, consider it your last request before death."

Harry watches as Malfoy is hit with a Crucio and watches in satisfaction when Malfoy ends up on the ground. Harry doesn't know that the Aurors and his family have arrived, but remembers the order to stall as long as possible.

"That was very kind of you Voldemort. Especially since it won't be my last request. Now you said something about a duel? Or are you just a body and not able to do magic?"

"You know, you really are cheeky. Your guardians really must not discipline you well enough. Insult me again and I'll show you how discipline should work."

"Oh please. Crucio? That's not discipline, that's torture. You clearly don't know much. I see not many of your followers showed up. Lost a few after the war? Did they realize you're not so high and mighty after all?"

Harry gets hit by a powerful Crucio, but manages to only drop to his knees and not writhe on the ground like Malfoy. "Let's duel Potter, before I kill you without a fight."

"Fine," Harry says, letting his wand drop to his hand.

Before either of them can fire a spell, spell fire erupts all around them and Harry ducks behind a gravestone. "Harry, we need to get over to Cedric and take the cup back to Hogwarts," he hears Sirius voice behind him. "Severus is with Cedric, Remus is getting the portkey and meeting us at Cedric's. Let's go, cast as strong a shield as you can."

Harry decides to listen to Sirius, and casting shields around each other they make their way to Cedric. They grab hold of each other, Cedric and Severus and when Remus gets over to them with the cup, Filius has made his way over as well. They all grab hold and Filius says Portus Hogwarts before Harry feels the sickening pull in his stomach. They land right on the castle steps.

"Alright, Filius, please levitate Cedric to the infirmary. He's still breathing but not sure what he was hit with," Severus says. "Harry, besides the cut on your arm, what were you hit with?"

"Just a crucio."

"JUST a crucio? Infirmary. Now."

Seeing the severe look on Severus' face Harry doesn't even think about disobeying and they all make their way to the infirmary where Poppy is ready. "Cedric first Madame Pomfrey. Severus can take care of me."

She nods and takes care of Cedric while Severus heals the cut on Harry's arm before handing him an anti-cruciatus potion. "You're healed and fine, at least physically."

"I'm fine mentally and emotionally as well. He's back but I think you saw that. I hope they catch most of the Death Eaters."

"Hopefully. Was it necessary to bait him like that?"

"I was just keeping him busy talking. Did you see how he crucio'd Malfoy?" Harry grins.

"Yes. Also not the brightest idea to encourage, but it'll be alright because I saw him get apprehended before we portkeyed out so he's definitely in trouble."

Harry gets up and walks over to where Cedric is. "Will he be alright?"

"Yes. He will need a few weeks at St. Mungo's, but I've countered the curse he was hit with. I've already sent for St. Mungo's healers to join us soon and they'll take him to a specialized ward that deals with dark curses."

"I'm glad. I'm going to write him a letter with what happened to take with him for when he wakes up."

Harry summons parchment and quill before sitting down to write his letter. When the healers show up, he gives the letter to Cedric's father. "Would you mind giving this to him when he wakes up? It explains everything. I will visit him when I can."

"Absolutely. And I saw what you did in the maze. Thank you for saving my son."

"He is a good friend Mr. Diggory, there's no need to thank me."

"Alright Harry, let's leave them to get to St. Mungo's. We should get to the Great Hall where the rest of the school is waiting," Remus says.

The moment they walk into the Great Hall everyone cheers, and Harry is grabbed into a hug by Viktor. When he pulls back he smiles and signals for quiet in the hall. "Everyone. I have returned safely. Cedric will be fine but he has been moved to St. Mungo's for recovery as he was hit with a dark curse. I don't want to ruin the party, but to let you know a little bit of what happened; the portkey took us to a cemetery where we watched Voldemort return. Yes, he is back. We are still waiting for several professors to get back, let's hope they do so safely. Aurors were there and apprehended many Death Eaters. Oh, last piece of information. I don't actually hate Professor Snape. He is one of my guardians and my godfather. He no longer has to hide his true loyalties and so I'm no longer hiding the fact that we are family."

There is a moment of silence while everyone stares between Harry and Severus. Harry knows it got the focus off Voldemort for now, which was his goal. Severus pulls him into a hug. "I hadn't been able to do that yet, and very nice diversion. They'll realize in a few hours or tomorrow what you truly said but by then the party will be over."

"That was my goal."

"Oh, and that reminds me," Severus says before pulling back from the hug, turning Harry sideways and giving him a solid smack on his backside, causing Harry to yelp. "That was for that boggart. A clown and red nose, really?"

"You do realize it was worth it, no matter how much my backside stings right now, right?"

"I have no doubt about that but I wasn't about to let it go either."

"I know, and I've expected it," Harry grins.

"Alright, let's stop shocking the students and get some food," Minerva says from behind them.

Harry swirls around and hugs Minerva. "So glad you're back! What about everyone else?"

"Everyone is safe. The Aurors apprehended every single Death Eater and they are all in holding cells. Trials are tomorrow. Voldemort himself is the only one who got away in the scuffle. He will have a hard time to find more followers which will slow him down. Nobody apprehended can claim Imperius or anything either because they were caught red handed and checked for all curses and spells immediately."

"Good."

"Yes. And might I say you did very well tonight. Both in the maze and at the graveyard. And you had that smack coming for the boggart, but it was the funniest moment of the night." 

Harry grins. "I know. It was pretty perfect."

"Alright, food. Harry, you need it and I can feel my stomach protesting," Sirius says. "And we'll discuss your Patroni later if you want but we all know where those came from. I think your Patronus couldn't choose and went with all of them." 

"That's what I thought. I'm not worried," Harry says before walking to the table with food.

Harry is immediately surrounded by the rest of his friends, and he enjoys spending time with everyone. He gets many questions about Severus, but most avoid talking about what happened after the Task. When it's time for curfew, all the professors usher the students towards their dorms. Harry is grabbed by the arm by Severus before he can get far. "You're staying with us."

Harry nods and makes his way to the teacher's wing where he waits for his guardians to get there. Kingsley is already there and grabs him into a hug. "I'm glad you're alright kiddo."

"Same to you. I know it's now all just starting, but for now we're all safe."

Sirius walks in a minute later and pulls Harry, who is still standing, into his lap on the couch, wrapping his arms around him. "I just need to hold you and assure myself you're fine."

Harry doesn't say anything, and when Remus walks in and sits on the other end of the couch, Harry slides off Sirius' lap and leans into his side with his feet on Remus' lap. It doesn't take long for him to fall asleep, and when Severus walks in he smiles at him. "He must have been exhausting, and getting hit with the cruciatus is bound to have an effect on him despite the anti-cruciatus potion I gave him. We still have over a month of school left, he needs to rest now so he can focus on that. Minerva told me on my way in that classes are cancelled on Monday because of all the added excitement this evening. She also knows that quite a few students will find one or both of their parents in Azkaban by tomorrow so they'll need to figure out what their next step is. I know most of them will unfortunately be Slytherins, so I'll likely be busy if they accept my help. It is now known where my loyalties are, and most of the questions when I walked them to the dorms were about that. I also had several students come up to me and tell me they knew their parents were apprehended. I need to be there for them but I want to be here for Harry as well. I'm tempted to ask Minerva to deal with the Slytherins."

"You need to do what's best for you. Harry needs us. When he wakes up he will start thinking, and I have no doubt he will lose it at some point. Knowing Harry, it will likely show itself in terrible attitude and a huge tantrum. However, he has Remus and I so if you need to deal with the Slytherins you should do so."

"I'm going to ask Minerva to look in on the Slytherins. Harry is more important at the moment. I need to be available, even if he doesn't need me."

Sirius gets up and takes Harry to bed before heading to bed himself, preparing for the next day. He knows Harry is either going to blow up, or he's going to pretend everything is fine and the same until it all boils over.

As it turns out, it catches up with Harry the next day and he ends up throwing a huge tantrum over being asked about his homework. Severus, Sirius and Remus are all there and Severus is quick to react. "Corner. Now."

Harry is about to protest, but Severus gets up from the couch and walks towards him, which has Harry moving to the corner quickly before he gets swatted. He's not sure where his anger came from, but he has a feeling his guardians know and are going to tell him.

When Severus calls him out of the corner, he hesitates slightly before turning around. "Harry, come sit."

"We know you are struggling with what happened yesterday. Why don't we talk through it?" Sirius says kindly.

"You're not mad?"

"About your tantrum? No. To be honest we had been expecting it. We know you need to deal with everything. Let's start with the start of the Task. Walk us through everything and talk about how you felt."

Harry recaps the Task. When he talks about the feeling of the portkey, he struggles slightly. "I hate portkeys, I would be fine never taking one again."

His biggest struggle comes when he talks about how he was tied up. Sirius, Severus and Remus hadn't seen that part and didn't know for sure what happened. They are positively horrified. "I just felt so helpless tied up like that. I couldn't do anything, I couldn't free myself even wandlessly. He could have killed me right then and there and there would have been nothing I could do. Nothing in my training prepared me for that situation."

"Harry, there will always be a possibility that you aren't prepared for something. You can't let it get you down. You did amazing out there. You did what you were trained to do, and you stalled long enough to not have to duel Voldemort."

"I know. I just hadn't talked through what happened yet. Until now nobody else here knew what truly happened. Watching him rise out of that cauldron was terrifying. Being helpless was terrifying. Seeing my entire family show up to help felt amazing. I knew you were all there because you love me and wanted me safe."

"That is exactly right. And you are keeping that bracelet, so that we will always be there when you need us."

"Thank you."

"Is there anything else you want to discuss about yesterday?"

"No, but if I think of something else I'll bring it up."

"Alright. Then it's time for you to go to your room and do homework. Tomorrow is an extra day off, but you still have work to do. The Tournament is over. For now you don't worry about Voldemort. Your only worry should be on finishing the school year strong."

"Can't I go see my friends and do homework tomorrow?"

"What is the rule?"

"School first."

"So you answered your own question. You don't have much, you'll be done by lunch."

"Oh fine. How are the Slytherins?" Harry asks, looking at Severus.

"You need me more. Minerva is dealing with the Slytherins. Many of them will have one or both parents in Azkaban by lunch."

"You should be there for them, as Head of House."

"You need me more, as my godson. Many of them don't trust me, so it's probably better either way."

The smile on Harry's face tells Severus he did the right thing, but before any of them can say anything Lord Peterson floos in. "I'm glad you are all here. The trials are over. A list of Death Eaters sentenced to life in Azkaban will be in a Special Edition Prophet tonight by dinner time. Severus, it will also be in there about you being Harry's godfather. I was asked about that by Skeeter so someone already leaked that bit of news. Now, I have some more information. During the veritasserum questioning of Karkaroff, he admitted to putting Harry's name in the Goblet. He was unable to tell us who ordered him to do that, and we think it was protected by an Oath of some sort. The Aurors will continue trying to get that information. He also admitted to trying to poison you in France because you had gotten him kicked out of Hogwarts. During the questioning of Barty Crouch Jr., who we were all surprised to see as he's supposed to have died in Azkaban, he confessed to using the Imperius on his father to have him turn the Cup into a portkey. Barty Crouch Sr. has been suspended and sent to St. Mungo's, it appears he was under the Imperius for so long it might have done permanent damage. It was decided that any student who lost both parents today will be allowed to stay at Hogwarts until other arrangements can be made, even if that has them stay a little bit longer after the school year. We don't think that will be an issue, as the article tonight will also ask all relatives of children who want custody to apply for it and many had godparents who automatically get custody. That brings me to the next issue. Severus, you were named fifth godfather of Draco Malfoy. It appears the first four are now all in Azkaban, and you get custody of Draco unless you object. I can file your objection should you choose to do so."

"Is there someone who can take him?"

"We will try to find his relatives."

"I do not want custody of Draco. As great of an opportunity to get him to see a different side of the world this might be, I can't be both a guardian to Harry and a guardian to Draco at the same time. I choose Harry. However, might I make a suggestion? Andromeda Tonks is probably his closest living blood relative. We all know how much the Ministry loves those connections. She's married to a muggle and they have a daughter who is in her 20's and an Auror. Draco would get a new perspective on life, with good supervision and strict guardians who will also make sure all his needs are met. Andromeda and Ted are lawyers and Andromeda was a Slytherin so she won't fall for his schemes. If they agree, they would be excellent guardians for Draco."

"I know Andromeda and Ted. I will approach them and ask, and if they agree they can file for custody at the same time as I file your rejection. They want these kids placed fast so I don't think anyone would object. I'll go do that right now. However, until then you are technically his guardian, which you would be anyway as his Head of House while school is in session. I will make sure to find other arrangements before school runs out, should Andromeda and Ted not work out."

"Thank you Henry, for everything. And I know you bill Harry's time to his account manager, but please send me a bill for any time spend on my behalf."

"I object," Harry says. "Lord Peterson is my solicitor and any time spend on my family will be paid by me. Severus, I know if it wasn't for me you'd take Draco in and that this is all being done for my benefit. You can argue all you want, we are not discussing Lord Peterson's fees. I can't even tell you what they are because I don't care. I know the goblins make sure it's what the contract says, and other than that I don't want money to become an issue."

"I will not bill you Severus. Harry, I don't even bill you for everything, simply because there are times I just want to help out."

"Please don't do that, but I know you're going to do what you want anyway." 

"That's exactly right. Also, I didn't have time to talk to you yet, but you did amazing in the maze. I don't think I've laughed that hard in a long time as with the boggart. I've now heard everything that happened in the graveyard and I admire your strength. Also, expect a very frantic Sara to visit you as soon as she can. She was terrified when you disappeared and I think she wants to strangle you for scaring her like that. We were all there to watch the Task."

"But it wasn't my fault."

"That's a woman for you, especially when that woman is a mother. It's how she expresses her relief that you're alright. It will likely manifest in a light shaking and strangling hug, followed by being forced to eat baked goods and drink tea. I say go with it on this one."

Harry looks hesitant but nods. "Alright, I can do that."

"I'll get going and I'll let you know when I find out something about the guardianship. In the meantime, try not to strangle Draco. He will likely act out. Since Lucius is in Azkaban, Draco can claim Lordship. However, House Malfoy does not allow underage Lords, so until he turns seventeen he's an Unconfirmed Lord. Theodore Nott will likely claim his Lordship and be Lord Nott and be emancipated, he has an aunt that will live with him. If they can't find a guardian for Draco, they will likely allow him to become Lord and become emancipated, but we all know Draco needs a good influence so we are not petitioning for that."

They all nod in understanding before Lord Peterson continues. "There's one final matter. Voldemort claims to be the Slytherin heir. It is being looked at by Gringotts to see if that's true, but if it is he'll get a seat in the Wizengamot. He wouldn't be stupid enough to show up, but he could assign a proxy. Gringotts has said that because he used Harry's blood to create a body, they don't think he's Slytherin any longer. In fact, because Harry defeated his physical body when he was a baby, they think Harry might be the Slytherin Heir by right of conquest."

Harry sighs. "I don't need another Lordship for crying out loud."

"Actually, should something happen to Draco you would get that Lordship as well as the closest living blood relative because Narcissa is a Black and you are Lord Black with a blood connection. I forgot to mention, Narcissa did not get life. She got five years as she does not have the mark but she was at the graveyard and therefore considered an accomplish to an attempted murder. Pettigrew is getting kissed for his crimes against James and Lily as well as being a Death Eater."

Lord Peterson takes his leave and Harry looks at his guardians. "I'm glad they are all locked up. I'm glad Peter is getting kissed. Now I'm going to do homework and pretend my life is normal."

They look after Harry in concern, right as Kingsley walks in. When Harry hears him he turns back. "Kingsley, I have to apologize. I never addressed you correctly as Lord Shacklebolt. It was rude of me not to."

"Don't worry about it Harry. I didn't address you as Lord Potter-Black either, seeing just Harry, the son of two friends. I would never ask you to call me Lord."

Harry smiles and turns back to his room while Kingsley walks further into the living room. Sirius, Severus and Remus fill him in on what they have just found out. "That's a lot to take in. And Voldemort can't claim any of Harry's Lordships because they share blood?"

"No, because it was stolen blood. If Voldemort tried it would be considered line theft and Harry would have the right to take his magic if that happened. Thank Merlin for small favors."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Look at all these names of those captured," Hermione says. "There has to be at least twenty five here, and they are probably all the loyal followers Voldemort had left. It says new guardians are being found for the children affected. It also mentions that Severus is your godfather Harry."

"I know. I knew there'd be a special edition paper and that it would be mentioned."

"It also says Severus is Draco's guardian?"

"Only until someone else can be found. Apparently he was Draco's fifth godfather, and the other four are no in Azkaban. There are a few people who might be willing to take him though, as Severus doesn't want him."

"That's good. You'd kill him if you had to live with him."

"Most likely. Or at the very least seriously injure, which would probably seriously injure my backside."

Viktor laughs. "It's probably good that's not happening. I always suspected Karkarof had something to do with all this. I'm glad he's in Azkaban now."

"Me too. Anyone want to go flying?"

They all nod in agreement and soon they are heading for the pitch. The maze has been removed and they are all glad for it. On the way there Harry turns to Alex. "Tonight, you and I are going into the Forest. Viktor is coming as well. It will be after curfew because it's better when it's dark. We won't go long, but you'll have been in it at least."

Alex nods, and soon they are focused on flying. Harry and Alex don't go to their room at curfew, knowing Flitwick will be notified if they leave again after that. Instead, they wait in the common room for Viktor and when the room is empty, they all slip under Harry's Cloak and make their way out. When they get out of the castle they take off the Cloak and make their way to the Forest. They spend maybe half an hour just walking around. At one point they encounter a Centaur and Harry has a conversation with it before they move on.

When they get back to the common room, Flitwick is waiting for them. "I don't want to get any of you in trouble with your parents this soon after the Task. Harry, I know how Sirius would deal with this. Alex, Viktor, I don't know about your parents but I doubt they'd be happy. You are all three grounded from your broom until the end of term. If anyone asks, it's because you didn't go to bed after I asked several times and were loud while playing Exploding Snap in the common room. And gentlemen, I don't want to know where you went but the next time you leave the common room after curfew your parents will be notified, understand?"

"Yes sir," they chorus.

"Go to bed now."

When they get to their room and get ready for bed, Alex turns to Harry. "The Forest is creepy at night, but we didn't really encounter much. I expected worse."

"It can be pretty bad depending on what you encounter but it depends on the night and don't ever go alone. We got lucky."

"Yeah, but dad would have probably gotten his paddle out if he had gotten another letter home."

"I have a feeling so would Sirius. I was hoping the Third Task would provide some leniency if we did it close enough to it."

"Good thinking. Goodnight."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Potter-Black, what is the meaning of this?" Severus asks, looking absolutely furious.

"Draco hexed me from behind, said it's my fault his parents are in Azkaban. I simply bound him and disarmed him so he couldn't do that and then sent my Patronus to let you know to come here."

"Mr. Malfoy, do you have anything to add?"

"No sir."

"Very well. Walk down to my office and wait outside. I'll be there in a minute to deal with you."

When Draco, with a final glare at Harry and Severus, has left, Severus turns to Harry. "You handled that well Harry. I was in search of you anyway. Andromeda and Ted have applied for guardianship and it has been granted. They are already on their way here, so after they meet I will inform them of this incident. It's unfortunate they have to deal with this on the first day, but he can't go around hexing people."

"I honestly understand where he's coming from. Everything he knows has just been pulled out from under him and he's lost. The only way he knows how to deal with it is by hexing the person he feels is responsible. I'm not even mad."

"He's still going to get punished and will have to find another way to deal with everything. Also, I came to warn you. We cancelled extra lessons until the summer because we want you to have some time to be a normal teenager, but it has not escaped our notice that you are spending a lot of time with the Twins. Remember the rules regarding pranking. No professors, no rule breaking and nothing that puts you or anyone else in danger. You are being considered for Prefect next year so you might want to keep that in mind as well."

"Don't worry so much Severus. You want me to be a normal teenager so that's what I'm doing. I have to go though, I have study hall in a few minutes. Good luck."

The next time Harry sees Draco is at dinner and he is fidgeting slightly in his seat. He knows Ted and Andromeda have just left as they introduced themselves to Harry, and he has no doubt Draco was punished for trying to hex him. He really hopes they can break through his walls this summer and have a different Draco come to Hogwarts come fall. He also knows there will be a couple times that he'll see Draco this summer, as the Tonks' are family and will at the very least be invited to his birthday party. He just hopes nothing major happens.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

There is a week left until summer holidays, and they have just finished their final exams. Why exams aren't the last thing they do Harry will never understand, but they have another week of classes during which they study a few new things in advance for the following year, and most of it is to prepare them for their summer assignments. At breakfast Harry shares a look with Alex, Fred and George and on his signal they all whisper a spell. They purposely sat at different tables and suddenly everyone is wearing robes in neon versions of their house colors. Slytherin is bright neon green, Hufflepuff bright yellow, Ravenclaw bright blue and Gryffindor bright red. Students try to undo it and turn their robes back to black but they are unsuccessful.

Up at the Head Table, Severus, Sirius and Remus share a look and sigh. "Are we going to punish him for this or let it go?"

"It's technically not breaking a pranking rule so we're not. It'll be up to Minerva."

They all look at Minerva who shakes her head and stands up. "Fred, George, Harry and Alex, front and center!"

It doesn't take long for the four boys to stand in front of the headmistress, wondering if they're in trouble.

"As much as I appreciate the show of house loyalty, this is not part of the dress code. Please change everyone's robes back."

"We can't professor," Harry says.

"And why not?"

"It's timed. It'll wear off by lunch."

"Why would you time it as opposed to using a counter?" 

"So students can't change it back themselves."

"I see. And is this the only prank you've all planned?" 

Seeing the guilty looks on their faces, even though they try to hide it, confirms that it's not. "Gentlemen, I do not want to see anything else. We are one week away from the holidays and I'd like it to be calm and quiet. Any further pranks and your parents will find out."

"Yes professor," they all say before she dismisses them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, the last prank is set to go off at the end of the Leaving Feast," Harry says softly to Fred, George and Alex. All week they've been playing small pranks all over the school, but since they haven't been caught red handed, Minerva hasn't been able to do anything about it. "I just finished setting it up. If they somehow trace it back to me, I'm not ratting you out. I'll take the blame. I'm already in trouble for being out after curfew last night so it won't make much difference." 

"Where did you go?"

"Viktor and I were sitting by the lake talking, since we won't see each other until he's done with Quidditch season. We lost track of time and didn't make it back. Kingsley caught us and told us there wasn't much he could do as a professor but he'd inform our parents. I have no doubt I'll be grounded when we get to Black Manor tomorrow."

"If you get more than a grounding, you will not take the blame by yourself."

"Deal. Act surprised, I added a few extras."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dessert is coming to an end, and everyone is talking excitedly about the holidays when suddenly Peeves flies into the hall and throws a water balloon at the wall behind the Head Table. In the distraction, Harry says the activation phrase for his spell and all the students are pushed off their seats, the benches and tables disappear. Next, disco lights appear in the middle of the hall and music starts playing loudly. Before anyone can say or do anything, the Hall fills with balloons and streamers and the walls are decorated as if for a party.

And that's exactly what happens. The second the party is set up, all the students gather in the middle and start dancing to the music. Harry glances at his guardians who are giving him suspicious looks before he feels a hand on his shoulder.

"Harry, I saw you whisper the activation phrase. Was this your doing?" Minerva asks, looking stern.

"Yes Professor."

"Were you alone?"

"They are my charms and spells, I set them up earlier today."

"Very well. I will inform Sirius. I have a feeling the beginning of your summer will be boring but for now, enjoy the party you so skillfully set up."

The party lasts until well after curfew when it is finally broken up. Harry makes his way back to the common room with Viktor, whom he'd been dancing with most of the night between talking with their friends. "I hate that I won't see you until the end of the summer," Harry says.

"I know. Quidditch takes over my life. Normally I train much more than I have now, this year the Tournament interfered with that so I have to train extra hard."

"I understand. Just write."

"I will. And we have the two-way mirrors so we can talk."

"Except for however long I'll be grounded for."

"I still can't believe you did all that. It was an amazing party though, and very kind of the headmistress to allow it."

Harry smiles. "She really does mean well, and she knew I wasn't trying to do anything harmful. There's no doubt I would have gotten punished by her if it hadn't been the last night of term though." 

"Probably. Was it worth it?"

"Absolutely. Sometimes the consequences are worth it, and this was one of those times. One last time to celebrate with friends. I'm just sad Cedric missed it. He said he'd be in the hospital for another week. He has to come back for another year, having missed so much for the Tournament and then his injury. He wants to be prepared for his NEWTS. That means he'll be in your year in the fall."

"I'm happy he's coming back. Will he be Head Boy again?"

"He says he doesn't want to be. He said being friends with the troublemaker of the school and Head Boy at the same time is too much work," Harry grins.

"What if you become a Prefect?"

"Cedric will still be Prefect. And I don't know if Professor McGonnagal will make me a Prefect but it'd be cool if she did. Who knows what next year will bring."

"Well, I need to finish packing. The train leaves early tomorrow and I know you have to meet your guardians."

Harry and Viktor give each other a hug goodbye and make their way to their respective dorms. Harry smiles at Alex when he walks in. "That was a good party."

"Yes it was. A good way to end the year."

"I'll see you plenty this summer, but depending on how long I'm grounded we might have to change some of them."

"Just write me if we need to change them. I'm going to sleep. I have some charity thing I have to attend as soon as I get off the train tomorrow."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, how long am I grounded for?" Harry asks the second he walks into the living room.

"Three weeks, that's both for the party and for being out after curfew. Really Harry? You couldn't stay out of trouble one more day?" Sirius asks incredulously.

Harry just shrugs. "It's worth it."

Severus comes from behind him and swats his behind in passing. "Maybe you need more punishment of that variety to get you to change your mind on that."

Harry just laughs. "It won't. Look, the being out after curfew was accidental. The party was a great way to end the year without anyone getting hurt. After the year we've had, we deserved a good party. That being said, even though I'm grounded can I invite Nymphadora Tonks to the Manor to see if I have Metamorph abilities? Andromeda mentioned she's one and could help me figure it out."

Sirius sighs. "Yes, you may invite her. I've been curious about that myself and if you are she can help you learn how to use them. Doing work and extra training while grounded will be good. You will also be doing all your summer homework and when you're done you'll be helping with chores around the house."

Not liking the extra chores, but not wanting to give in, Harry just nods. "Fine. Are we leaving now?"

It doesn't take long for all the bags to be at Black Manor by way of house elf, and for the four of them to follow by apparition. Harry immediately falls down on the couch and spreads his arms. "It's so good to be home."

AN: I hope you all liked it, and I hope my section breaks showed up correctly this time. No, this is not the end of the story. Next we'll have Harry's summer vacation. Will it be the calm summer he's hoping for or will Voldemort come out to play sooner than expected?


	43. Chapter 43

AN: I've been doing a lot of reading which caused me to not write for a couple days. Quite a few of the stories on my story alert list updated this week, and I always put reading before writing.

I have no idea how old Tonks actually is in Canon. Severus started teaching the year Harry was born, so I'm having Tonks start Hogwarts his second year, which would be the year Harry's parents died. Now it's 12 years later so she'd be 23/24 which seems about accurate to me.

That being said, I hope you enjoy this chapter :) Also, I realized I made a mistake by not including Lord Peterson in the Sacred 28 at the beginning, but yet making him a Lord anyway. Pretend he's in the Sacred 28 and Harry has known all along!

Chapter 43

Harry has been home for two days now, and he's incredibly bored. He has finished all his summer homework and is now in search of one of his guardians. He really wants to visit Cedric, whom he hasn't seen since the Third Task, now that he is able to. He just hopes they will understand and let him go despite the fact that he is grounded.

"Severus? Are you busy?"

"No Harry, I'm not. What do you need?"

"I was wondering if it would be alright for me to visit Cedric? He's still in the hospital and I haven't been able to see him since the task. I know I'm grounded but I'd feel like a terrible friend if I waited that long to see him."

"Hmm you have a point. We didn't think about the fact you hadn't see him. Very well, I'll take you. Visiting hours are for another hour so we have enough time for you to see him. You can then also explain how you're grounded and won't be back for a few weeks."

Harry smiles. "Thank you! I'll go grab a cloak."

Severus puts down the book he had been reading and gets up as well. He knows where Sirius and Remus are, and not wanting to disturb them he sends a Patronus to let them know where he is taking Harry. As soon as Harry is ready he apparates them both to St. Mungo's. They walk up to the visitor's desk to check in. "We are here to see Cedric Diggory," Severus says.

"Your names please?" 

"Harry Potter-Black and Severus Snape."

The receptionist looks at a list and nods. "You are on the list of approved visitors. Here are your visitors badges, please have them displayed openly. He is on the fourth floor, room 401."

Harry and Severus make their way to the elevators and up to the fourth floor, where they show their badges to the security guard. "Why is there so much security?"

"With the Dark Lord being back, and Cedric being one of the ones who was there that night, he was placed on the high security ward. If he had not put you on his visitor's list you wouldn't have been able to visit him. St. Mungo's has spells on all their entrances that cause any glamours or even polyjuice potions to fail immediately so you can't pretend to be someone else to get in. If they don't know who you are they check your magical signature so you can prove who you are, but she probably recognized us. Nymphadora Tonks hates coming here because it makes her change back to her normal looks, which she doesn't like. I'm not sure I'd even know what she looks like."

"I suppose that makes sense. Here is room 401. Are you coming in?" 

"Yes, I'm not leaving you alone. Besides, I'd like to make sure he's alright as well."

Harry knocks and walks into the room, smiling when he sees Hermione there. "Hi Hermione, hi Cedric."

"Hi Harry, it's good to see you! I wasn't expecting you, Hermione already told me you got grounded."

"I know, but I convinced Severus to come see you. How are you?"

"It's strange to hear you call him that. And I'm doing pretty good. They said I should be allowed to leave by tomorrow or the day after at the latest. I'll still be recovering but I'll be able to get out of bed and finish recovering at home. I hate being stuck here but it's better than the alternative. Oh, and before you start feeling guilty about me getting hurt I'll have you know that I'm not above hexing you as soon as I'm allowed to do magic. None of this is your fault and I don't want to hear otherwise."

Harry notices Severus' lip twitch, which is a clear indication that he's amused, and Harry smiles. "I know, I wouldn't dream of it. So how is that going to work with your graduation since you've been gone for a month?" 

"I'll be coming back for another year. I've missed so much this year, and half the time I was more focused on the Tournament than my school work, so I'll be repeating my seventh year before taking my NEWTs."

"It'll be good to have you at school another year. I'm sure Hermione is happy."

Hermione punches Harry in the arm playfully. "The same could be said for you and Viktor!"

"Oh I suppose. He's gone playing Quidditch most of the summer so I'll hardly get to see him. He'll be at Black Manor for my birthday and I might visit him in Bulgaria if we have time. Do you guys have any summer plans?"

"I don't. I'll be focusing on recovering and building up my magical reserves and besides that just relaxing."

"I'll be going to France with my parents for a few weeks. I'll also be doing my summer assignments and then starting on next year's books," Hermione says.

"I already finished all my assignments," Harry says smugly which causes Hermione and Cedric to stare at him. "What? I live with three professors and I'm grounded. The first thing they made me do is homework. I'm kind of sad that I'm done actually."

"Sad? How can you be sad about not having homework?" Cedric says disbelievingly.

"Because now they'll make me do chores instead. I'm not allowed to sit and do nothing all day when grounded."

"That's really unfortunate. I'd say what I really think of that if there weren't any adults in the room," Cedric grins.

Harry and Hermione laugh and Severus raises his eyebrow.

"So if you're returning we'll get to really find out who the better seeker is," Harry grins.

"I know it won't be me."

"Oh come on, you're a good seeker! It'll make the games more interesting, that's for sure."

"If you say so, but I don't think I stand a chance against the two of you. I do want to see Malfoy's face when he finds out though."

"So do I. It's going to be priceless. You can't be on a house team if you're on a professional team so Viktor is retiring from professional Quidditch at the end of the summer. He said it's not what he wants to do with his life anyway so might as well."

"Oh I didn't even think about that. He's really giving it up to play for Ravenclaw?"

"Yeah. He said he was thinking about retiring anyway once he graduated, since he wants to have an actual career in something and not be travelling constantly."

"So what else do you have planned for the summer Harry?" 

"Not too much really. I had planned to see Alex this weekend but that obviously has to be rescheduled. I'll be seeing him whenever we can, and I'll probably hang out with you guys. We're planning to do some travelling but not sure when or where yet. Next week are the Supreme Mugwump elections so we'll have to be in the country for that anyway. Molly has invited me to the Burrow, so I'll probably be over there some. The Twins already sent me an owl yesterday that they had something to show me, and I replied back that I'd see it whenever I'm ungrounded. Besides that I suppose I'll be doing what every teenager does during the summer," Harry says, shrugging.

"And what's that?" Severus says with a raised eyebrow.

"Annoy their guardians of course. It's our goal in life and now that we're out of school we can do it fulltime," Harry grins, looking back at Severus.

"I see. I think we might be able to cure you from that."

"I'm sorry gentlemen, visiting hours are over," a medi-witch says from the doorway.

Harry sighs, he feels like he just got there. "Alright Cedric, keep recovering and the next time I see you we might be able to actually do something as opposed to standing around a bed."

"Bye Harry, bye professor. Thank you for coming."

Once back at Black Manor Harry sighs and sits down. "Three weeks is going to take forever," he grumbles. Sirius and Remus are now in the living room as well and Sirius pulls him into a side hug.

"It'll be fine pup. Besides, Tonks is coming tonight so you might have something fun to practice."

"I know. Did you really have to ground me for that long? Even last year when I snuck out to Hermione's I didn't get grounded as long as this."

"Yes, we really had to. I also remember smacking your backside last year. I'll trade you a week of grounding for a smack."

"Severus swatted me already, that doesn't count?"

"No, because that was different. A swat in passing and a smack are different and you know it."

"You're serious? I let you give me a smack on my backside and I'll only be grounded for two weeks?"

"Yes, I'm serious. And before you ask, no you can't get two weeks taken off by getting two smacks."

Harry stands up. "Alright, do your worst."

Severus and Remus are trying to hide their amusement, watching the two of them. Sirius pulls Harry down across his knee and lands a hard smack on his backside before sitting him up. "Hmm, yeah I see why you say a swat in passing is different. I'm going to go owl Alex that I can meet up with him after all! See you at dinner!" Harry says before running up the stairs.

"Alright you two, what's so funny?"

"You're going soft Sirius. One smack for a week of grounding? He probably isn't even feeling that anymore. You just wanted to go back on his punishment."

"I don't like him being upset."

"He's a teenager, he's not supposed to like punishment. You realize that right?"

"I know, and he's still going to hate the rest of the two weeks. He did have a point about last year."

"And he would have been grounded longer last year if it hadn't been the end of the summer."

"That's besides the point."

"Sure it is. Just admit you melt the moment he turns those eyes on you."

"Oh fine, I admit that I'm going soft. So I have to admit that I look forward to Tonks coming over for dinner. She's definitely the female version of me," Sirius grins.

Severus groans slightly. "That is bound to irritate me quickly."

Just then the floo flares and someone with bright pink hair stumbles out. "Ouch! I really need to get better at this."

Severus raises his eyebrow while Sirius just grins. They hear Harry come running down the steps. "Is that the floo?" he yells before he even comes fully into the room.

"Oh, hi Tonks!"

"Hi Harry. How have you been? I know we only saw each other for a second the other day."

"I'm good. I'm so glad you're here, I need something to do!"

Tonks laughs. "I understand the feeling. I just came from work and someone mentioned there'd be food here?"

Harry grins. "Yes it's probably ready by now. Come on, I'll show you where to find it."

Tonks and Harry start off towards the kitchen, leaving behind an amused Remus, a disgruntled Sirius and Severus shaking his head.

"She didn't even greet me," Sirius says, slightly put off.

"That's because Harry immediately jumped at the chance to have some fun. Come on, let's go join them," Remus grins.

"I'm going to need a headache reliever before the night is over," Severus says, following them to the kitchen, where Harry and Tonks are already talking enthusiastically.

All through dinner Tonks tells stories of her Hogwarts days, before talking about Auror training. "Do you want to be an Auror Harry? Everyone seems to think you do."

"I haven't decided yet what I want, but I don't think being an Auror is for me. I want something that doesn't require me to risk my life."

"That makes sense. Do you have your grades for this past year yet? I'm sure you were too busy with the Tournament to study much, I know I would have been."

"I have three professors as guardians. I don't think slacking was an option."

"Sirius! You're not being hard on him are you?"

"I'm a parent now Tonks, I have to be responsible and all that."

"Traitor. We always said we'd never grow up!"

"He still hasn't, don't let him fool you," Remus grins.

Sirius, looking slightly put out, suddenly gets a mischievous look on his face. "say Harry. Once you reinstate Tonks as a member of the Black family, you have to approve any marriage for Tonks. He or she will have to ask you for permission."

Tonks looks positively horrified, while Harry looks confused. "That is incredibly old fashioned. You mean to tell me that if she wanted to get married right now, a fourteen year old gets to decide if she can or not?"

"Well you haven't formally reinstated her to the House of Black yet, but yes that is what that means."

"Ridiculous."

"You have to understand Harry," Tonks says hesitantly, "that the House of Black has a reputation and they might not want just anyone marrying into the family. Being a member of the House of Black provides certain protections and rights, and the Lord might not want to give those protections to just about anyone. Also, any unmarried female in the family has a substantial dowry and the Lord is supposed to help protect against gold diggers. As Lord Black you will also hold family meetings, which are formal gatherings to share family affairs. You wouldn't want for instance a Death Eater at those meetings, and if he or she was married to a member of House Black they would be required to attend family meetings."

"I'm supposed to hold meetings?"

"Yes, for each of your Houses. However, you are the last of the Potter, Peverell and Gryffindor lines so it'd be pointless as you'd be the only one there. For the Blacks, currently the only member of the family is myself and Draco Malfoy as Bellatrix and Narcissa are still in Azkaban," Sirius explains.

"So once I reinstate Tonks and her parents, I should hold those meetings?"

"Yes, except keep in mind that Lucius Malfoy would be in attendance as well once he's out of Azkaban since he is married to Narcissa Malfoy nee Black. I was going to train you on the protocols for such meetings once you actually had family members to meet with."

"I see. Can I disown a member of the family?" 

"Yes, if you have good reason to do so."

"Well I'd say being sent to Azkaban for being a Death Eater is a good enough reason. Would it be beneficial to have said family meeting before the Wizengamot elections?"

"I suppose it would if you want to discuss possible candidates and allies."

"Sirius, I know I'm grounded, but can we please go to Gringotts tomorrow? I'd like to take care of some things."

"I'm starting to think being grounded isn't going to do any good as you keep having good reasons to leave the Manor anyway or have people over like Tonks."

"How about two smacks and we forget the grounding?"

Tonks is looking around in confusion, uncertain of where the conversation has gone while Severus just has his head in his hands in exasperation.

"Very well. Come here," Sirius sighs. Harry walks over and turns sideways, allowing Sirius to give him two smacks. He yelps slightly at the second one before walking back to his seat.

"What just happened?" Tonks asks.

"Harry got in trouble and got grounded for three weeks. Sirius lowered it to two weeks earlier after Harry successfully exchanged one week of grounded for a smack on his backside. He just successfully got out of his punishment altogether in exchange for two smacks, which is what you just witnessed," Severus explains.

"I see. That's a positively Slytherin move on your part Harry."

"Thank you. If you don't mind me asking, what House were you in?"

"Slytherin," she grins. "I gave Severus a hard time in his first few years."

Severus grimaces. "You sure did. She started at Hogwarts in my second year of teaching. She had learned to use her Metamorph abilities to her advantage by then. I can't tell you how many times I sent a letter to her parents and she had a visit from them to discuss misbehavior. I have to admit they were very good at dealing with it, which gives me hope when it comes to Draco."

Tonks nods. "I dreaded you sending a letter home. I know Draco has already had several run-ins with my parents. He really needs to learn to keep his mouth shut. He looks decidedly uncomfortable when I was over there earlier so maybe he's learning. Harry, are you ready to see if you are a metamorph?"

"Sure, living room?"

"That works, somewhere comfortable is always best."

"Before we start. If I disown Narcissa and Draco, but reinstate Andromeda and Ted, will that mean that Draco will be at the family meeting since he's their ward?"

"Yes. And a family meeting is opened with specific ritual words that don't allow him to discuss any of it with anyone outside of who's there, and legillimency and veritasserum can't be used to get it either."

"Alright. Go ahead and start Tonks."

"Alright. You know Occlumency, right? Go ahead and close your eyes and find your magical core. Now I want you to focus on pushing some of your magic outward and focus it into changing something about yourself. It could be your hair, your face, eye color, anything you want."

Tonks, Sirius, Severus and Remus watch in fascination as Harry's hair becomes a little longer and turns blonde. When Harry opens his eyes, he notices the looks of horror on his guardian's faces and the grin on Tonks'. "What?"

Tonks conjures a mirror and Harry looks in it. "Wicked! It worked!"

"_Harry James_! You change back right this minute or you will find yourself spending quality time in the corner! You look like bloody Malfoy!" Sirius says, enraged.

"Language," Remus chides softly, avoiding look at Harry.

Harry grins at Tonks, who is now outright laughing before closing his eyes and changing back. 'Well I'd say we've confirmed he's a metamorph," Severus says drily.

"Don't you ever do that to me again!" Sirius says.

"That was really good Harry," Tonks says. "And they are overreacting. As usual. That is the technique you use to change anything you want. As you become more comfortable with it you will be able to do it without focusing so hard."

"Wicked. This will be really useful! Imagine the pranks I can play while pretending to be someone else!"

"I will be placing limits on it right now," Severus says sternly, ignoring Harry's pout. "You are not allowed to constantly change. While practicing it's fine, but when you are not practicing I want to see you as you are, not what you want to be at the moment. Also, you will not use this ability to break rules. Is that clear?" 

"You know how to ruin a moment, but fine."

"And no turning into Death Eaters," Sirius adds.

"Oh come on! You have to learn to have some fun!"

"The image of Lucius Malfoy in my living room is not what I consider fun."

"If you want I can come over every day for a bit and we can practice? There are some changes that are a little bit harder and some you haven't even thought of yet."

"Sure, that sounds good."

"I'll be back tomorrow afternoon then. Also, try not to use it too much. Let your magic adjust to the changes. When I was little I could only do as many changes a day as my age, just so I wouldn't overdo it especially since my magic wasn't fully developed."

"Alright thanks Tonks. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Well, that was fun. But you all seriously overreacted. You knew it was me!"

"And it wasn't fun to see."

"Oh fine. So Gringotts in the morning?"

"Yes, and you should call a family meeting tomorrow night if you want to discuss the elections."

"Alright, you can teach me how to do that after Gringotts tomorrow."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good morning Lord Potter-Black. How may I assist you?"

"Good morning Ragnok. I would like to make some changes to the family rolls as Lord Black please."

"Very well, let me get the necessary paperwork. Will we be reinstating or disowning?"

"Both. Thank you."

"This is the paperwork for disowning. Who will be disowned from the Black family?"

"I, Lord Black, disown Bellatrix Lestrange nee Black, Narcissa Malfoy nee Black and Draco Malfoy. So Mote it Be."

Ragnok nods, and watches the paper fill in. "Please sign here at the bottom using this quill. It is a blood quill that uses your magical signature. Don't worry about your hand, once we are done I will put a potion on it that will heal it."

Harry signs, watching in horror as his signature is carved into his hand. "I suppose this is so nobody can sign for me, pretending to be me?"

"That is correct. These quills are illegal outside of Gringgots. Now who would you like reinstated?"

"I, Lord Black, reinstate Andromeda Tonks and Nymphadora Tonks as ladies of House Black. I hereby unlock two Black dowry vaults. The contents of the dowry vault for Andromeda Tonks nee Black will be added to her main vault. The dowry vault for Nymphadora Tonks will remain in trust with House Black until her approved marriage. So Mote It Be."

"Please sign here and then hold out your hand so I can heal it."

Harry does as he's told before watching in fascination as his hand heals itself. "Do I need to do anything else?"

"No. Letters have already been dispatched to those involved, it happens automatically when you sign a form like this."

"I have a question. I heard it's hard for a muggleborn to get a job at the Ministry unless she has the backing of a pureblood family, and most pureblood or half blood wizards won't marry her without a dowry?"

"That is correct, unfortunately. The Ministry is still backwards enough they will hire a half blood or pureblood before they'll hire a muggleborn. A dowry is a common thing, as it helps young couples start their life together and have the funds to do so. It dates back to when the man provided for the family and the woman stayed at home."

"I see. Would I be able to provide someone the protection of House Black if they don't have Black blood?"

"Yes, but I would not do so lightly."

"Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry?"

"Please get Lord Peterson for me."

It doesn't take long for Lord Peterson to appear in the room. "Lord Peterson, thank you for coming. I just disowned Bellatrix, Narcissa and Draco and reinstated Andromeda and Nymphadora to House Black. I was thinking about offering Hermione Granger the protection of House Black. She would have a dowry and have many more opportunities in life. She is one of the brightest witches of our age and it'd be a shame to see that go to waste simply because she's muggleborn. She's also a good friend. What are your thoughts?"

"I think that would make a very powerful statement. All your actions today would show that you do not condone crimes and you do not have a problem with half bloods or muggle borns. You are half blood yourself, but so is Nymphadora. It would also show that you are not like previous Black Lords who were all about pureblood ideology. It shows that you have a good understanding how our world works and that you are forging your own path as opposed to simply following the easy path blindly. It will win respect with a lot of those Houses that you benefit from having an alliance with."

"Very well. Ragnok, is there a form for that?"

"Yes Lord Potter-Black. It's right here so go ahead when you're ready."

"I, Lord Black, do hereby offer Hermione Granger the protection that comes with being a Lady of House Black. She will be assigned a Dowry vault to be used for an approved marriage. So Mote It Be."

"Very well, go ahead and sign and a letter will be sent to her. It will include a small pamphlet about what it means to be a Lady of an Ancient and Noble House."

"Thank you Ragnok. That was all I needed. Thank you Lord Peterson for your time. Dobby can pop you back if needed?"

"No that's alright, I need to go to Diagon for some supplies anyway so might as well do it now. I advise you to hold a Family Meeting soon as the news will probably be in the Prophet come morning."

"There will be one tonight. The letter will go out as soon as we get home."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Harry is nervous, more nervous than he has any reason to be. Sirius has coached him on how to conduct the meeting and invoke family protection. When Harry had gone into a mild panic attack Sirius had calmed him down and sent him to his room to think about something other than Lordship duties. Now he is pacing in the living room, waiting for everyone to show up. The only thing that allowed him to eat anything at all at dinner was the threat from Sirius that he would be sitting on a sore bottom in front of the whole family if he didn't. Sirius, knowing it was an empty threat, smiled when it made Harry eat.

Because of all the changes Harry had been too busy for Metamorph training that day. The floo suddenly flares green, and Hermione steps through with a smile. "Good evening Lord Black. I wish to thank you for the protection offered me by House Black."

"Good evening Ms. Granger. House Black is honored to offer the protection to such a bright and young witch. Please have a seat." Harry says with a smile, pleased that Hermione has apparently done some reading and knows the proper way to approach a Lord at a Family Meeting.

Next through the floo is Tonks, who stumbles and is caught by Harry. "I apologize my Lord Black. Thank you for inviting me and reinstating me as a lady of House Black."

"Apology accepted Ms. Tonks, and welcome back to House Black. Please have a seat."

As predicted Andromeda comes through next, as opposed to Ted, because she is a Black by blood and therefore has a higher status within House Black. Draco will be the last one through as he is not only disowned himself, he is only there because he is currently under the guardianship of a lady of House Black.

Once everyone is greeted and has taken a seat, with Sirius coming in from the kitchen where he had been talking to Remus and Severus, Dobby pops in with tea and biscuits. "Please everyone, help yourself. Should you wish something other than tea, please do not hesitate to ask Dobby."

"Dobby, bring me hot chocolate," Draco snaps.

Harry tries to control his anger. As he is in charge of the meeting, he can see that Andromeda and Ted are ready to scold Draco but aren't doing so because of him. "Mr. Malfoy, do not speak to my elf that way. You will ask nicely or not get anything at all. You are a guest in this house, do not ever forget that. Should I find that you have mistreated any elf in any way while under the protection of House Black I will not be pleased. Apologize to Dobby and try again."

Draco blanches, realizing he just offended Lord Black. "I apologize Lord Black, it will not happen again. Dobby, I apologize for being rude. Could you please bring me hot chocolate instead?"

"Dobby can do so."

"Now that we have that out of the way, let's get this started," Harry says. "I, Lord Black, do hereby invoke Black Family Magic upon this meeting and this room so that none of what happens and is spoken off may be shared outside this room. Attempting to share through writing, body language or spoken word will be noticed by Lord Black immediately and result in temporary loss of magic until the offending party has been disciplined. May the Black Family Magic protect the Black Family Secrets."

They all feel the magic swirl around the room, and it's clear that there's quite a bit of power behind it coming from Harry. The magic closes the room off from all eavesdropping, placing the highest level privacy spells on it. "Now that that is done, I would like to welcome you all to this Family Meeting. A lot has happened today so let me just give you a quick rundown. This morning I disowned Narcissa Malfoy, Draco Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange from the family lines. Draco is here as he is under the guardianship of Andromeda and Ted. Andromeda, Ted and Nymphadora have been reinstated under House Black. Dowry vaults for Andromeda and Nymphadora have been provided. Andromeda, yours has been released as I approved your marriage. Nymphadora, yours will be released upon an approved marriage. I have also offered the protection of House Black for Hermione Granger, and is now consider a Lady of House Black with the same status as Nymphadora, including a dowry vault. Sirius remains a gentleman of House Black, with all protections and rights that contains. As you all know, hierarchy within Ancient and Noble families is important for proper functioning, especially when families grow and get larger. The Lord is at the top, the Heir is second. After this follow the gentlemen and ladies who have Black blood running through their veins. This is followed by those gentlemen and ladies who do not have Black blood. Within this room, that means that if for some reason you need something from House Black and I am unavailable, you will contact Sirius as he is my father and closest to me, Lord Black, in blood. Draco, do not give me that look. Sirius blood adopted me, which means I have Black blood running through my veins and he is truly my father. Any further disdainful remarks or looks and I will do something about it. You have attacked me multiple times this year alone, and you should be lucky I accept your presence here. Do not make me regret it. Any questions so far?"

Nobody says anything, and Harry doesn't fail to notice the slight awe in many of their faces. He knows he's in full Lord mode and not teenager Harry mode, which some of them have never seen.

"Very well. Don't hesitate to approach me at any time. First on the agenda. Andromeda, you are a healer are you not?"

"Yes my Lord. I am a fully qualified healer and a solicitor, but I mostly focus on healing."

"Excellent. I have a wonderful solicitor already, but I find myself in need of a personal healer. As you can keep everything confidential under Family Magic, I kindly request you to be the personal healer for everyone in the Black family. I often get treated for minor things by my guardians, but for anything major and regular checkups I need someone who won't go blabbing to the papers. Would you be willing to be our personal healer, and come to Hogwarts when necessary?"

"Yes my Lord, I would be happy to fulfill my duty to House Black."

"Perfect. Also, please don't call me 'my Lord', it reminds me too much of a certain Dark Lord I despise. Lord Black will suffice. I understand it's not protocol but we'll break from protocol for this small thing. Next on my agenda. Nymphadora, have you been fully trained in all duties concerning a lady of an Ancient and Noble House?"

"No Lord Black, I have not."

"Andromeda, are you familiar with all of these duties?"

"Yes Lord Black."

"Would you be willing to tutor Hermione and Nymphadora over the course of the summer, so that come fall both of them are fully aware of their duties, rights and protections as Ladies of House Black?" 

"Yes Lord Black, it would be my honor."

"Thank you. You will be compensated for both the tutoring and for your time spend as a healer for House Black. No arguments. Next, allies. Next week is the Wizengamot elections for Supreme Mugwump and we want someone we can trust to do their job fairly and honestly. To help with this we should form bonds with other Houses, which is good to do in general even without elections. We already have Lord Potter, Lord Peverell and Lord Gryffindor as I am all three of those. I don't see a problem finding an ally in Lord Shacklebolt, Lord Prince, Lord Peterson or Lord Weasley. That would give us allies with 2 other Ancient and Noble Houses and five Noble houses. The other Ancient and Noble Houses I think we should focus on are House Abbott and House Longbottom. The other Noble House is House Bones. I would also like to suggest Lady Bones be nominated for Supreme Mugwump. As Head of the DMLE she is fair and honest and not prone to prejudice. She has the respect of many, even those who do not like her. Does anyone have any thoughts?"

"I'm assuming you will approach Lord Shacklebolt, Lord Peterson, Lord Prince and Lord Weasley?" Sirius asks.

"Yes, I will. I already have appointments with all four."

"I think House Abbott and House Longbottom will likely agree to an alliance of friendship with House Black."

"I intend to offer an alliance of friendship to all of them. An alliance of trust or an alliance of confidence is too much to ask in such a short time, those things need to build up. Ultimately we'd like to work up to an alliance of loyalty."

"I think that is an excellent plan Lord Black," Ted says. "It will give you quite a bit of support within the Wizengamot but also outside of it. The respective Heirs of those Houses will be at Hogwarts and will continue the alliance of friendship. I've heard about your attempt to unite the Hogwarts Houses and this will help with that as well."

"Does anyone have any objections?"

Nobody responds so Harry nods with a slight smile. "Then I will work on those alliances. From now on I expect you to treat each member of those houses as if the alliance was already in place. Even if they decline, we will show that it does not change how we treat them and they might come around at a later time. Draco, I do not appreciate you rolling your eyes. I have seen it multiple times now. Please go put your nose in that corner over there so I do not have to see it again. It is disrespectful."

He can tell that Draco is about to protest, but along with stern looks from Andromeda and Ted, he grudgingly gets up. "I apologize Lord Black."

Harry watches Draco walk to the furthest corner of the room. He's not sure how he feels about exerting authority over Draco, but he knows if he doesn't start now it will only escalate. Start as you mean to go on after all. Sirius had warned him about this part, so at least he knew he could do something about it.

"Those who have accepted an alliance of friendship will be invited to my birthday party, which is also a good moment for everyone to mingle and get to know one another. That is all I have to say tonight. Does anyone have anything else?"

"I do Lord Black," Nymphadora says. "I have decided to resign as an Auror. I might be good at disguise but I'm incredibly clumsy. I also realize I would be better off elsewhere in the Ministry. Is there any place you would like more Black family influence?"

"I want you to go where you are happy, even if that is not at the Ministry. We should never be forced into a job we do not like. Do you need funds for living expenses during your transition?"

"Thank you Lord Black. I intended on staying with the Aurors until I found another job."

"As I said, we should never be in a job we do not like. If you wish to resign immediately, please let me know."

"Are you sure Lord Black?"

"Yes Nymphadora, I am sure. I do not offer anything unless I'm certain. I will have funds sent to your account to cover living expenses. I wish for you to be happy, and while I've always heard you are a good Auror you are clearly not happy there. Please inform me once you've found a new career. If you need help deciding, don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you Lord Black."

"Anything else?"

"Lord Black, why did you accept me into House Black?" Hermione asks, sounding almost shy.

"Because you are an incredibly bright witch and you can go places in this world, if only those with influence were more accepting of muggle borns. With the backing of House Black you will have extra protections during the war, be able to do whatever you want to do in life without regard to your blood status, and be able to marry who you wish. I wanted to provide that for you. I could have given you the same protection as Lord Potter, but I wanted you to have Andromeda to help guide you in the Wizarding world and all that entails. Customs and traditions are very different from the muggle world and can at times be confusing and appear backwards. However, they are traditions for a reason and I assumed you'd appreciate having someone to help you."

"Thank you Lord Black. I read the pamphlet from Gringotts and immediately got a book on what it meant. When I explained it to my parents they were amazed that I had a friend who would do something like that for me. You've already done so much, I don't think I can ever stop thanking you."

"Hermione, you are one of my best friends. It only makes sense. Just keep in mind that I have to approve any and all formal courtships, and I will require a formal courtship before marriage. Make sure you let Cedric know of your new status, he has been raised to know what to do if there's a situation he needs to approach me for."

"Yes Lord Black, I will make sure he knows."

"Well, if that is everything let's conclude this meeting. Draco, please return."

Once Draco is seated Harry closes the meeting. "I, Lord Black, do hereby conclude this Family Meeting and release the Family Magic."

They all feel the room open up again and the protective magic dissipate. They all know not to talk about anything they just talked about, as it's no longer private.

"Thank you Harry. We will see you on your birthday, if not before. We have to get going, it appears we need to conduct some lessons on proper behavior," Andromeda says with a smile.

"Don't go too hard on him, this has to be hard for him."

"We won't, but he has to learn. Goodnight everyone."

Soon everyone is gone and Harry falls down on the couch with a sigh. "That was harder than I thought," he says to Sirius. It doesn't take long for Remus and Severus to join them.

"You did incredibly well Harry. You looked like a true Lord, not a fourteen year old teenager. I was very impressed and I think everyone else was as well."

"Thank you. I'm exhausted, I'm going to bed."

Once Harry is out of the room Sirius smiles at the others. "He really did amazing. I don't think I've ever been so proud. He had a commanding presence, seemed sure of himself even if he probably wasn't, and basically conducted the meeting flawlessly. When Draco caused problems by being disrespectful towards him, he disciplined him and Draco obeyed without argument. That's how obvious it was that he was Lord Black, not Harry."

"He disciplined Draco?"

"Draco was rolling his eyes at everything Harry was saying. Harry sent him to the corner so he could roll his eyes without being seen. I probably shouldn't share that."

Sirius tries to levitate another cup of tea towards him, and finds he's unable. "Oh crap."

A pajama clad Harry comes back down the stairs. "Really Sirius?"

Sirius has the grace to look ashamed. "I'm sorry. All I mentioned was Draco's eye rolling."

"I know, the moment you starting talking I could hear your conversation. Keep that in mind. You do realize the family magic won't release until you are disciplined for breaking family secrets?"

"I know. I have had it happen once before when I was younger. My dad used a cane on my backside."

"I think we all know I won't do that. I think since you were talking about his time in the corner you can go spend time in that same corner. Do you have any idea how weird this is for me?"

"I apologize Lord Black."

Sirius walks to the corner, knowing he won't get his magic back if he doesn't. Suddenly Harry stares off into the distance before cursing loudly. "Severus, please apparate me to Hermione's house. It seems Sirius isn't the only one. She's talking to her parents and they are going to need a memory charm. Why doesn't the Family Magic protect against telling it altogether like a vow would?"

"I can answer that," Sirius says from the corner.

"Turn around and tell me."

"It does work that way, but slightly different. Those we tell can't tell anyone else, they'll find it works just like a magical oath. It's odd that it doesn't work the first time, but I think part of it is to see how trustworthy members within the family are. So if I go blabbing everything to someone else, you would make sure never to tell me anything without family magic invoked. So it still protects the secrets and allows you to go obliviate those who were told, while also testing your family members." Sirius explains, looking ashamed now.

"I see. Turn back around and stay there until I come back," Harry says. It's obvious to everyone in the room that he's highly irritated, but also that he is currently Lord Black, not Harry. Harry quickly spells his robes back on and holds out his arm for Severus to take. Soon they are knocking on Hermione's door.

"Harry! What are you doing here?"

"May we come in? And I'm here as Lord Black."

Hermione's parents have walked into the hallway, and because of what Hermione has told them they realize it's family business not a pleasure visit. "Of course. What's wrong?"

Once they are in the living room, Harry turns to Hermione. "You told your parents about the meeting."

"I,"

"Don't try to lie. I told you about the privacy spells of family magic. Go ahead, try to perform a spell."

Harry watches Hermione's eyes widen before she reaches for her wand and finds out she can't do anything. "I am so sorry!" Hermione says, almost in tears. She suddenly realizes what she's done.

"You won't get your magic back unless you are punished. You are grounded from the library for three days and I will not be sending you any books either. Severus is going to obliviate your parents from everything you've told them and of us being here. I will know if you go to the library. Try to not forget next time, please."

Hermione is almost in tears but nods. "I apologize Lord Black. I didn't think but will endeavor to do so in the future."

Harry nods to Severus who then obliviates Hermione's parents. They immediately apparate away and back to Black Manor. "Sirius, you can come out. I'm going to bed. Hopefully nobody else forgets to think before speaking tonight."

Harry walks up the stairs, irritated that he already had to invoke his authority as Lord Black. He feels weird doing it, but knows he doesn't have a choice or Sirius and Hermione wouldn't get their magic back. He's barely made it to bed when Severus comes in, closing the door behind him.

"Harry? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really. It's incredibly weird, but I didn't have a choice or they wouldn't get their magic back. The book I read also said the punishment had to fit the crime, so something less severe like with Sirius did could be solved with less punishment, compared to what Hermione told her parents. It's odd to do to my dad and to one of my best friends, and yet that's how it works. I love the protections it provides, but I didn't expect to have to invoke it so quickly."

"I think Sirius will think twice from now on. He feels truly bad about breaking the family magic trust already. Hermione was almost in tears when she realized what she'd done, even before you informed her of her punishment."

Harry sighs. "I know, it's still a rotten position to be in."

"I know. Since I am your godfather, and on paper one of your guardians, you fall under the protection of House Prince as well. Don't bother approaching me for an alliance of friendship, I know that's why you made an appointment with me as Lord Black. Consider it accepted. May I make a suggestion?"

Harry nods. "Yes, and thank you."

"Accept Remus and I into House Black as sons of House Black. We would have a lesser status than the others because we are sons, not gentlemen, of House Black, but you and Sirius would be allowed to discuss all the dealings with us. Since it appears your starting alliance with all other Houses will start with House Black, it would make the most sense and would avoid situations like tonight where Sirius truly didn't mean harm."

"I didn't even think about that. Why didn't I think about that?!" Harry cries out in frustration.

"Calm down. I didn't think about it either until just now. Let's get that done first thing in the morning, and then Sirius will be allowed to show us a pensieve memory of the Family Meeting to let us know what is going on. Would that be acceptable?"

"But then I'd be your Lord Black while you're my Lord Prince. Talk about confusing!"

"Yes it is if you think about it, but it only works that way in official settings at which point our roles are clear. If we're in a setting where I need to be Lord Prince, I will be Lord Prince. If I need to be a son of House Black, I'll be the son of House Black. You will be able to tell which I am and can act accordingly. Remus is currently not a member of any Ancient or Noble House and could benefit from it."

"I'm an idiot for not remembering that."

"You are not an idiot. You are new to this. Now get some sleep and I'll take you to Gringotts before breakfast. I will also be making elections for House Prince so we can talk amongst the four of us with Family Magic protection through Family Meeting without you having to inform everyone in House Black. It might come in useful at some point."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Thank you for seeing us Ragnok. I need to make two more elections for House Black."

"Very well. Go right ahead, I have the forms ready."

"I, Lord Black, do hereby welcome as Sons of House Black, Severus Tobias Snape and Remus John Lupin, with all protections and rights that entails. So Mote it Be."

"Excellent, please sign here."

Once Harry signs, a letter appears in Severus' hand. "Apparently they are saving an owl since I'm here. That works. Ragnok, would you mind handling a few elections for House Prince?"

"Certainly Lord Prince. Go right ahead."

"Actually, I need to do something first. Harry, would you do me the honor of becoming by Heir?"

Harry just stares at Severus in shock. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You are my godson, but that does not automatically make you heir to the Prince family, just to the Snape family. I would be honored if you would allow a blood bonding ritual and become my legal and magical heir."

"Severus, what if you have children?"

"I can't have biological children, and I have no intention of ever adopting any. I am aware you are already a fourtime Lord, but I also know you want a large family in the future. Your children will be able to lay claim to the Prince title through you and I want to see the Prince line continue, not die out with me. I love you like a son Harry, and this would mean a great deal to me."

"I'd have five titles. So even if I had five children, they'd each be a Lord or Lady at some point, and Heir to some title until then. Do you have any idea how rare and amazing that is?"

"I am very aware. You will be able to assign who is heir to what title in your will so there is no dispute over that. I would recommend your first two children be Black and Potter Heir respectively, since they are Ancient and Noble, while the others get the other three titles. It will be many years before they would get that title, you are young, so do not worry about that. And if you don't have that many children, some will get more than one title just like you. Now, do you accept?"

"I'm speechless."

"Harry," Severus says, slightly exasperated. He didn't think it'd be this hard.

"Of course I accept. So we're doing a blood bonding, just like Sirius did when I was a baby?"

"Yes, Ragnok, would you assist please?"

"With great pleasure. Here is a ritual bowl and dagger."

Harry and Severus move over to the bowl and Severus picks up the dagger. Ragnok pours a potion into the bowl and nods for them to begin.

"I, Lord Prince, accept as my son Harry James Potter-Black, Lord Potter, Lord Black, Lord Peverall and Lord Gryffindor, with all my heart and soul. I accept him as my son in blood and magic, and will guide him life as my own. Upon completion he will be my Heir." Severus says before slicing the palm of his hand with the dagger, letting the drops of blood fall into the bowl and potion, before it magically seals the wound. He hands the dagger to Harry.

"I, Harry James Potter-Black, Lord Potter, Lord Black, Lord Peverall and Lord Gryffindor, with all my heart, soul and magic, accept Severus Tobias Snape, Lord Prince, as my father in blood and magic and accept his wisdom and guidance. I am honored to call myself Heir Prince." Harry slices his palm, letting his blood drop into the potion in the same way before the wound seals itself.

Ragnok pours some of the potion into two goblets and hands them each one. They quickly drink it and Harry feels a warm feeling go through him. He feels his hair straighten somewhat and he grows half an inch, to his utter surprise. When the change are done, Ragnok gives them a rare smile.

"Congratulations Lord Prince, Heir Prince, on your bonding. All magical and legal records have updated to reflect the new status."

"Thank you Ragnok. Severus, did I just grow?"

Severus smiles. "When you do a blood bonding, you take on some characteristics of your new parent. As Sirius, James and I all have black hair your hair didn't change except get a little bit more manageable since my hair is straight while theirs was messy and curly. I'm taller than either of them, so you grew slightly but I think it was barely half an inch if that. Other than that you look the same. The blood bonding on leaves minor changes, unless your biological and blood bond parents look like polar opposites."

"I see. Interesting, I had not realized this. So now every Lord will know my new status, won't they."

"Yes, and it will likely be in the papers tomorrow if any journalists are watching the records. Now it's already after breakfast. Let me make my other elections and then we can head back to the house. Ragnok, are you ready?"

"Yes Lord Prince, go right ahead."

"I, Lord Prince, do hereby welcome Sirius Orion Black and Remus John Lupin as sons of House Prince, with all rights and protections that provides. So Mote it Be."

"Please sign."

Severus signs and then smiles at Harry. "Let's go home. We're late for breakfast and I'm getting hungry."

Harry smiles and they quickly thank Ragnok before making their way back to Black Manor.

"What took you so long?" Sirius asks when they sit down.

Severus and Harry look at each other and Severus decides to be the one to explain. "I do not have an heir for the Prince line, as you know. I consider Harry my son in every way that matters, but this morning we performed the blood bond."

Sirius' eyes widen before pulling Harry into a hug. "Congratulations kiddo! You deserve it." He then punches Severus in the shoulder. "And you should have invited us to come!"

"I apologize, I did not think about that."

"You're forgive if you'll do me the honor of putting the memory in a pensieve. We also received some interesting letters. Care to explain? You just told us you had to make a quick trip to Gringotts, not what it was for."

"I named Severus and Remus as Sons of House Black. This way we won't have a repeat of last night, and they will have the protection of an Ancient and Noble House. Severus named the two of you Sons of House Prince so that the four of us can have family meetings under Family Protection if we need to discuss something of a sensitive nature."

"Harry, you do know what that means?" Remus asks, wide eyed.

"Yes, it means that you will be able to get a job should you ever wish to leave Hogwarts despite your werewolf status. It means if you ever run into financial problems House Black will support you. Remus, you are with Sirius but you can't legally get married yet because of werewolf laws. As soon as that's changed and you two make it legal you would be a son of House Black anyway. I just sped things up a little bit. It also means you will be getting some cufflinks and tie pins with the Black crest for formal functions, and you can seek refuge at any Black property should you need it. It means anyone who makes a move against you makes a move against House Black. I know it's not often done in many families to those without family blood or not married into the family, but you are family to me."

"Thank you. And thank you Severus."

"Brilliant plan on using House Prince for extra protection for us, and for finding a way so we can avoid last night. I truly felt bad about that."

"Let's forget that ever happened. I had to put my dad in the corner for crying out loud. If I could I'd obliviate that memory from myself. Now, Sirius if you could please share a pensieve memory of last night with Remus and Severus I'd appreciate it. I will invoke Family Magic on the room before they watch it so it's covered."

They quickly finish eating before walking to the study to watch the memory. Harry invokes family magic on the room and Remus and Severus watch the memory. While they are watching, Harry sits at the desk and pulls forward stationary with the official Black crest and the black ink with hints of silver. It's the ink he's using for formal Black correspondence. He writes out formal requests for a meeting with Lord Abbott, Lady Bones and Lady Longbottom. He already has an appointment with Kingsley, Henry and Arthur. By the time he has sent off his letters Remus and Severus are done watching the memory and sitting on the other side of the desk, waiting for him to finish. "It's weird being on this side of the desk with you on the other side. Normally it's the other way around."

"Master Harry, Lord Shacklebolt is here to see you," Dobby says, popping into the room.

"Thank you Dobby, please show him in here. If you all would excuse me, I have Lordship things to do."

The other three leave the room while Harry cancels the family magic. He spells formal robes onto himself and stands up to greet Kingsley.

"Good morning Lord Shacklebolt, thank you for coming."

"It is a pleasure, as always, Lord Black. Before we start, might I say congratulations on becoming Heir Prince."

"Thank you. Please, call me Harry there's no need to stand on such formalities."

"I agree, please call me Kingsley. I'm assuming you have a reason for asking me to come? The request was on official Black letterhead and I must admit I'm curious."

Harry smiles, but remains in his role as Lord. He knows if he doesn't he won't be able to do this according to protocol. "I did have a reason. With everything that is going on in the wizarding world and the Wizengamot, I find it prudent to establish alliances. Alliances which help us make the Wizarding world a better place, which is what we are tasked with as members of the Wizengamot. Would House Shacklebolt accept an alliance of friendship with House Black?"

"I find myself agreeing the alliances are necessary. House Shacklebolt accepts an alliance of friendship with House Black."

"Thank you," Harry says sincerely. "If you don't mind me asking, who did you have in mind for Supreme Mugwump?"

"I don't mind at all. I am nominating Lady Bones. I believe she would be fair and honorable."

"I find myself agreeing."

Kingsley and Harry talk about other small matters before Kingsley takes his leave. Next he has Arthur come, and he has brought Bill. Apparently Arthur is trying to show Bill how things like this are done, as opposed to just reading about it.

By the time lunch comes around, Harry has spoken to Arthur, Lady Longbottom and Lord Peterson. He has Lord Abbott and Lady Bones scheduled for after lunch. He almost inhales his lunch, much to Sirius, Severus and Remus' amusement.

By the end of the day, they have all agreed to Alliances of friendship, and they have all expressed how impressed they are with how mature Harry is in his role as Lord Black. It's not often they deal with a fourteen year old Lord after all.

"Make sure to include all of them for my birthday invitations," Harry says absentmindedly at dinner.

"Harry, have you thought about getting a Regent for House Black?"

"A what?"

"A Regent is someone who handles your calendar, schedules appointments, screens official correspondence. Basically he or she is your personal assistant. You can name the same Regent for all your Lordships and they'd handle it all. With everything you have going on, it might be good to have someone who keeps track of everything and it would give you more freedom. He or she would write official letters for you, all you'd have to do is read them and sign them. It's a paid position and is often held by someone within the family."

Harry looks up, a thoughtful look on his face. "You think Tonks would be interested?"

"You could ask. She's coming after dinner for lessons with you."

Harry nods and continues his dinner. He realizes Sirius has a point, and he really does need someone because he has a feeling he will start getting more and more correspondence, and more and more invitations to various things. Especially once school starts up again he'll need someone to manage it all. As soon as dinner is over he goes to his study and writes up a formal job offer. "Sirius?"

"Yes Harry?"

"What is a normal salary for a Regent?"

"My father paid the Black Regent 20,000 galleons a year. It is a lot, but the Regent has to swear a wizard's oath not to reveal what they find out in their line of work which means he or she can't talk about their job with anyone. Also, the Regent often works a lot of hours."

"That's like 100,000 British pounds, isn't it?" (AN: for Americans amongst us, that's about $160,000 at the time I'm writing this)

"Approximately, yes."

"That is substantial but I see why that is. So if I ask her for all my Lordships, do you think 25,000 is fair?"

"Considering most of your work right now is for House Black, absolutely. You might consider raising it if you get a lot of correspondence for one of the other Houses as well, but for now that is a very good offer. And in comparison, an Auror starts at 8,000 galleons a year. She had a few years experience but you'll still be more than doubling her salary and she'd be good at it. She has the personality, and she'll be working with people a lot in this position."

"Thank you. Please keep this to yourself."

"Absolutely."

Harry finishes writing out his job offer, hoping she'll accept. He's not sure who else to ask. When Tonks comes over she finds him in his study, still wearing his formal robes. "What's with the robes Harry?"

"Meetings for alliances all day. I have something for you."

Harry hands over the roll of parchment and waits for her to open it. He sees her eyes widen and look at him in shock. "I can't accept this."

"And why not?"

"Lord Black, I'm sorry but I would love to be the Black Regent but not for this amount. That is insane."

"Tonks, you would be great at this job and you've just said you'd love to do it. I've been reliably informed that this is fairly standard for a regent of an Ancient and Noble House and you will be working some pretty crazy hours once I get busier. I need someone I can trust, and especially while I'm at school I need someone to hold down the fort. Also, and this is not included in the proposal, I want to ask you to move in here for your own protection. I need to know my Regent is safe."

"Lord Black, this is incredibly generous."

"Then do me the honor and sign your acceptance."

Tonks looks at Harry before taking the offered quill and signing.

"Good. Now I'm going to call you Dora because calling you Tonks isn't going to work in front of your parents, I know you hate Nymphadora and I'm not calling you all the time. Please call me Harry unless we are at formal meetings or events. Acceptable?"

"Yes, definitely. Wow, I never expected this when I came over for lessons."

Harry smiles back. "Why don't you go pack. There's a room on the second floor of this house that you may use. There is nobody else on that floor and would provide you the most privacy and your own bathroom unless we have guests. You may use the empty room on the first floor if you prefer to be on the same floor as us, and you would share a bathroom with Severus. It's your choice, I don't care either way. I expect you back here by tomorrow. Any furniture you don't need, please shrink it and put it up in the attic here at Black Manor, it will be safe there should you ever have need for it. Your room is fully furnished but if you want to keep some of your own furniture instead, feel free to shrink what's there and put it up in the attic for storage. Don't forget to unshrink it once it's up there. I'm too exhausted for lessons today, I just want to get out of these robes and curl up on the couch with hot chocolate."

"I'm going to tell my mom about my new job and then get her to help me pack. I will be back this evening and would prefer the first floor room."

"I will let Severus know."

Harry makes his way up to his room, puts on pajamas and makes his way back down. Dobby is already waiting for him with hot chocolate and he falls down on the couch next to Sirius. "She'll be packed and back tonight. She's taking the room on the first floor. This Lordship stuff is exhausting."

"You haven't really done much until now. This is your first summer as Confirmed Lord to the outside world so you'll be much busier. Don't be afraid to say no if you need time for yourself and you can do so without offending someone."

"That's what Dora is for."

"Dora?"

"I can't call her Tonks in front of her parents, it's weird. She hates Nymphadora. I hate . So I told her I'm calling her Dora."

"I see. I suppose that makes a lot of sense."

"Can we talk about something that has nothing to do with Lordships or wars or Wizengamots?"

"Are you excited for our trip next week?"

"Yes even though I have no clue what we're doing or seeing. I just look forward to sunshine and being away from everything. And now I have Dora to deal with everything here."

"We're leaving the day after the Wizengamot elections."

"Excellent. Alright, as much as I'm trying I'm falling asleep. Goodnight."

Harry puts down his empty cup and walks up the stairs, collapsing in bed. He now understands why someone would turn down a Lordship.

AN: Up next: Wizengamot elections, trips overseas and Harry's birthday! I've decided that due to length, the summer will likely span 3 chapters to cover it all. I figured you'd rather have more regular updates than wait longer for anything at all.


	44. Chapter 44

AN: I do not own the campfire songs or stories, they are found on the world wide web. I do not take credit for coming up with them, they are actually songs I've sang before and stories I've heard told before, while sitting around a fire. You can find all the places they visit on vacation online. The only place I mention that I haven't visited is Rome, and I highly recommend you visit all the others should you ever get the chance. It's worth the trip :)

At one point I have them eating at a restaurant that's based on Jamie Oliver's restaurant Fifteen, from the TV show Jamie's Kitchen. I am aware this restaurant did not open in Amsterdam until 2004. If there are similarities, that's because I borrowed the idea from that. I have my reasons for introducing that character into the story and it works, but I have a feeling some of you will recognize it.

Chapter 44

"Good morning Harry."

Harry looks up, not fully awake yet, while continuing his walk to the breakfast table. Everyone else is already seated, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. "Morning. Is there any coffee?"

"Aren't you a little young for that?" Dora asks, looking skeptical.

Harry simply ignores her and pours himself a big cup before sitting down, picking up the newspaper on his plate.

"We tried to tell him that too but he ignores us. We gave up," Severus says from behind his paper.

Harry starts skimming the paper for anything that seems interesting. He sees a small article mentioning his new status as Heir Prince but otherwise the paper mostly has speculations about Death Eaters, which is all it's been writing about lately. He tosses his paper on the floor next to his chair to get it out of way and starts serving himself breakfast which has appeared on the table in the meantime.

"Dora, there is a second office next to mine. It will be yours as it's unused right now. The only thing on my schedule so far is the Wizengamot elections, our trip overseas and my birthday. Viktor will be staying the night after my birthday before he has to get back to Bulgaria for Quidditch so don't plan anything the day after my birthday. Somehow schedule a day for the Dursleys to come over and send a formal invitation to Alex and his family for a day at Black Manor as well. I need to spend some time at the Burrow, Fred and George have asked me to stop by and I need to maintain the friendship alliance with the family. Please schedule that. Also, Eric Peterson has expressed his wish to spend time together, please schedule that as well. I want two hours a day for lessons at a minimum, more if the day allows. Simply write lessons and we can fill in later what they'll be. Then let me know if I can manage a short trip to Bulgaria to visit Viktor's family, I told him I'd try if we can work it with both our schedules. If I have time, contact them and see if it will be possible. I know I'm not required to be at all Wizengamot sessions as I have proxies to vote for me, but I would like to attend them to network and to keep up to date on what's going on. I will also be able to guide my proxies towards how I want to vote if something spontaneous comes up."

"I'll get it all scheduled and formal invitation sent where needed. Do the Dursleys accept owl mail?"

"Yes, they do but instruct Hedwig to wait as Vernon is not allowing Dudley to keep an owl at the house so she'll need to wait for a reply. Use Hedwig for them, she is the only owl allowed in that house and she knows to stay away from Vernon and Petunia. There is a beautiful black owl up in the owlery. I'd like to use him for formal correspondence if possible. I'd like Hedwig to remain for personal correspondence since all my friends will recognize her."

"Very well. I will get on that as soon as I get my office organized."

"If you need anything for your office, charge it to the Black accounts and I'll take care of it. I have no idea what furniture is even in there."

"I will do so."

"Alright, enough business at the breakfast table. What are your plans today Harry?"

"I'm going to Diagon Alley to get my books for next year and get started on those. I know we don't have booklists yet but for most core classes it's simply the next level book so it's easy enough to get. Any of you want to join?"

"Considering you aren't allowed to leave on your own, as you well know, you kind of need one of us."

"I know, but I just made the assumption one of you would make the time so you can encourage me to study ahead."

"Well I do want to get books on some of the cities we are going to be visiting so I suppose I'll go with you," Remus says.

"Such a hardship, as you clearly hate books."

Everyone laughs, knowing Remus is always up for going to the bookstore. "I also saw a new Defense book that's out, I want to get it and see if it has anything new and/or interesting."

"Dora, this isn't for today but can you help Sirius plan my birthday? You can help with invitations and make sure the right people are invited, and you can also reign him in if he goes overboard."

"I'd love to! I love planning parties, right cousin?" 

Sirius grins. "It will be the best party yet! Dora is really good at planning events."

"Harry, is it alright if I come along to Diagon Alley? I need to get a wardrobe befitting the Regent of House Black."

"Sure. I need to stop at Gringotts to set up the monthly salary transfer for you anyway so I can get the crest that needs to be on all your formal and outer robes to show you are Regent of House Black while I'm there. We should get going soon and beat the crowds. We can do Gringotts first, and then while you're at Madame Malkin's we can go to Flourish and Botts. I also need to see if I can find a good birthday gift for Neville. We will get an invitation for his party soon and since we're going on vacation I don't want to have to scramble to find a gift at the last minute."

"You're sure he's having a party? He didn't last year."

"Yes, he is. Lady Longbottom mentioned it when she was here. It's on his actual birthday, so the day before mine. I'm going to go get dressed and then I'll be ready to go."

Harry usually ate breakfast in his pajamas, not waking up early enough to actually get ready for the day beforehand. It doesn't take him long to get ready, and when he does everyone else is already waiting for him.

"Alright, I'm ready," Harry says, grabbing Remus' arm and apparating to Diagon Alley. They all walk down the alley towards Gringotts, appreciating the fact that there aren't many people out yet.

"I'd like to see Ragnok please," Harry says to the first goblin he sees.

Soon Harry is in Ragnok's office while the others head down to their vaults. "It seem I see you a lot Lord Potter-Black. How many I help you today?"

"I'd like to set up an automatic monthly transfer in the amount of 2,084 galleons to Nymphadora Tonks. Also, I need a copy of the crest for the Regent of House Black." 

"Certainly. I'm assuming Ms. Tonks is your Regent?"

"Yes Ragnok, she is. I also need a prepaid voucher for a whole new wardrobe at Madame Malkins. Leave the amount blank. Madame Malkin will return it to Gringotts with a receipt and the funds will be released to her to pay for it. It is for Ms. Tonks to use for a new wardrobe fit for a Regent."

"Give me one moment to set up the automatic transfer and prepare the voucher. I'm assuming you want the first transfer to be now?"

"Yes please."

Soon Harry has finished his business and he walks back to the lobby to meet the others. He has to wait a few minutes but then they can head out. Harry walks to Madame Malkin's with Dora and hands Madame Malkin the voucher. She is used to these things and accepts it with a smile. "I will owl you a copy of the complete voucher and receipt Lord Potter-Black."

"Thank you. Dora, you want to meet us at Flourish and Botts when you're done?"

"That sounds fine."

Harry and Remus walk to Flourish and Botts and start gathering his school books. Harry also picks up the Defense book he wanted to get before starting to walk around the store. As usual he looks in almost every section for books that sound interesting. Remus is doing the same and it doesn't take long for their baskets to be filled. When Dora finally joins them she laughs. "You two are incorrigible. Are you finished?" 

"I am. Remus?"

"I am as well. Let's go pay. Dora, do you need to get things for your office while here?"

"Yes I need to stop at the office supply store."

"We'll do that next and then all head home together. I, for one, am ready for tea."

Harry quickly pays for his books and shrinks them before walking out of the store and waiting for Remus and Dora outside. He looks around with a smile, before suddenly he comes face to face with Crabbe and Goyle. "Potter."

"Crabbe. Goyle. I didn't know you read books."

"You'd be amazed what you don't know. What did you do with Malfoy?"

"What are you talking about?"

"He said he's not allowed to talk to you and said it's your fault."

"I didn't tell him not to talk to you. You'd have to take that up with his guardians, and since that's not me I can't help you. Now I have better places to be."

"Harry, who are these two gentlemen?" Dora asks, coming out of the store with Remus.

"Dora, these are Crabbe and Goyle. Friends of Malfoy who are angry because Malfoy isn't allowed to talk to them and Malfoy apparently told them it's my fault."

"I can assure you it's not Harry's fault. Malfoy's guardians are my parents, and Malfoy is grounded which is why he can't talk to you. Once he's no longer grounded you are welcome to communicate. Keep in mind his mail will be monitored for safety reasons. Now if you'll excuse us."

The three of them walk to the office supply store and Harry sighs. "Why would he blame me. I had nothing to do with that."

"I think he blames you for who his guardians are and that translates into everything being your fault. He's just angry all his godparents and his parents are in prison. They never thought about what would happen to Draco if all Death Eaters were caught. It was a flaw in the plan, a mistake, and Malfoy is angry because Malfoys don't make mistakes. He is also angry because Severus declined guardianship because of you. I told him he's better off with my parents, that they are more lenient than Severus, but he wouldn't listen."

"Go figure. Not much we can do about it. Did you check out your office?"

"Yes, it has basic furniture but that's it."

"Alright. I need to order more official stationery. Get what you need and I'll pay for it all together once we're done."

Dora nods and starts getting everything. Remus simply looks around. He doesn't need anything but finds all the little gadgets and things fascinating. "Dora, don't worry about parchment. I will get a big pack of several different kinds and lengths."

Dora nods that she heard him, currently looking at quills. She picks a variety of quills and colors ink, knowing which ones she'll need for what type of correspondence. She also gets a big planner to keep track of everything for Harry. She knows he's getting the parchment. "Harry, do we need wax?"

"Yes and candles. I have some left but it's not much. Some string to tie letters to the owls as well."

They continue going through the store until they have everything they need and Harry has ordered the official letterhead parchments. Harry pays for everything and they head home. It is now close to lunchtime and Harry is definitely ready to get back. He wants to join the regular Arithmancy class that fall instead of keeping it as independent study, and wants to finish studying the fourth year books while he can to make that possible. He greets Sirius when he walks through to his room and then his study. He puts away all his school books. He has decided to keep the downstairs study for just Lordship things and the upstairs study in his suite for school things. He finishes putting away everything and looks around in satisfaction. Dobby has already taken all his schoolbooks out of his trunk and they are all on the bookshelf. All the non-school related books are back in the library. He puts some of the foot long scrolls in the parchment drawer for homework and studying before taking the rest of the office supplies downstairs. He puts the wax, some of the parchment, ink and quills in his study before taking the rest to Dora's office. She has just finished decorating with the decorations she got and smiles at seeing him.

"This looks good Dora. Here are the rest of the supplies. There is enough here to last for months, and I have a good amount in my office as well. I have a feeling lunch will be ready soon."

"Harry, I can't thank you enough for this opportunity. I look forward to all the interactions I'll have with people in this, and I work for people I actually like and who respect me. Now you're letting me live here."

"Dora, stop the gushing. You are family, and I truly like you. Let me know when you have a draft of my schedule, I'd like to see it, but let's go eat lunch. I can hear my stomach protest."

"You're a growing teenager. You shouldn't go this long between eating something. You should have regular snacks."

"I don't always remember to eat. At least with mealtimes someone will tell me it's a mealtime."

"I'll add it to my list of duties, making sure you get snacks throughout the day. You're an active boy, I've never seen a teenager eat as little as you."

"Are you trying to force him to eat Dora," Sirius says, walking into the kitchen, grinning.

"I think he should eat snacks between meals. He's a teenage boy. An active one at that."

"We've tried. Good luck. He's gained a good amount since last year but he's still a little under normal weight for his age and height."

"I've already told him it will now be part of my duties. What have you been up to this morning?" 

"I finished all the grading for the year and started planning for next school year. Got all your shopping done?"

"Yes, Madame Malkin will send me my new clothes within a week and I got my office organized. This afternoon I will start Harry's planner and figuring out his schedule."

"Excellent. How about you Harry?"

"Same, this afternoon I'm going to do fourth year Arithmancy. I want to get caught up and take it with the rest of my year this fall instead of as an extra lesson."

"That's a good plan. Let us know if you need help. I also don't want you studying all the time and I want you to take a break this summer. Get what you want to study done this week because you are not allowed to take books on vacation with you."

"Understood. Where is Severus?"

"In his lab. He is brewing for the infirmary at Hogwarts and making sure we have everything we need here. He wants to get it done before we leave for vacation so he can focus on other things this summer."

"I might go help him instead of Arithmancy. I can do Arithmancy tomorrow."

"It's your choice. For all we care you go flying."

Harry grins and heartily starts eating the sandwiches Dobby puts in front of him. When Harry is done he grabs a couple sandwiches and a cup of juice and walks down to the lab. "I brought you lunch. Are you at a stopping point?"

"I will be in a few minutes. I didn't realize it was that late already. Thank you."

"May I stay down here to help?" 

"If you want to it'd be very appreciated. There are several potions you can brew as perfectly as myself by now, since you helped me so much last year. Could you start burn salve and pepper-up?"

Harry nods and starts pulling out the necessary ingredients. He still follows the instructions just to make sure he doesn't miss something, but quietly he starts working. He sees Severus starting to eat the sandwiches out of the corner of his eye and smiles. He knows once Severus goes down here for the day he forgets time easily as he works continuously until done.

Harry and Severus work side by side until Remus comes down to get them. "It's almost time for dinner, you should find a stopping point. Harry, Dora said she has your calendar ready for the summer and wants your input on when to plan certain things."

Harry and Severus nod their understanding, both finishing their potions and bottling them. When they get up to the kitchen the others are already waiting for them, dinner on the table. "Sorry, we were almost done and wanted to finish," Severus says apologetically.

"It's alright, it was put on the table only a few minutes ago. Do you have much left to do?"

"With Harry's help I think I can get them all finished tomorrow morning and be done for the summer." 

"Excellent. Harry, you and I are going flying after dinner. You need some fun. You can discuss your calendar with Dora and then we are going to chase a snitch."

"Are you sure you're ready to be humiliated?" 

"I've been practicing. I can beat you at catch the snitch. You just watch out."

It doesn't take long to finish dinner, all the while talking about anything and everything.

"Alright Harry. Do you want to see Eric before or after vacation?"

"Let's do Alex and Eric after my birthday sometime. Let's plan the Weasleys before we leave next week. I got a letter from Alex earlier that he will be out of the country with his family until close to my birthday. Apparently the changes the dates of his trip, he wasn't expecting to go until later. Let's do the Dursleys before our trip as well, I know they usually go on vacation during the last half of the holidays."

"Very well, I will get to scheduling those. I will get you this week's schedule as soon as I have that updated."

"Thanks Dora. You ready Sirius?"

"Definitely! We still have at least an hour until dark."

Harry and Sirius run out the door, summoning brooms along the way. "You want to go watch?" Remus asks Severus.

"It's nice out so why not. Dora, once you're done you should join us. We like sitting outside when it's a nice night. I'll start a fire in the firepit."

The summer before Harry had insisted on a firepit, and Severus had finally given in and built one. There were lounge chairs all around it, and he had to admit it was a nice area. You can see the Quidditch pitch from there so Remus and Severus settle in comfortable chairs while Severus starts the fire. They can hear Sirius and Harry out on the pitch, and smile at the laughter.

It doesn't take long for Dora to join them. "It really is nice out here. Can we tell who's winning?"

"No, but Harry will win. He always does. On his birthday we'll have Viktor and Harry fly a Seeker's duel, it is incredible to watch."

"Oh look, Harry has caught the snitch!"

Harry and Sirius hug when they land and walk over, smiling. "That was fun. Definitely good energy release. The only thing missing here is hot chocolate. Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"Could you make us hot chocolate?"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

Harry drops his broom and sits down in one of the chairs. "I love that we can sit out here. The fire is amazing, and we can do campfire things."

"What are campfire things?" Severus asks, looking sceptical.

"You know. Songs, scary stories, that sort of thing."

"I am not singing," Severus says with a glare.

"Oh come on! Sirius? Remus?"

Remus shakes his head. "I'm out."

Sirius grins and starts singing incredibly off key, soon joined by Dora.

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Giddy and foolish all day long

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

A horse and a flea and three blind mice

Sat on a curbstone shooting dice

The horse he slipped and fell on the flea

"Whoops," said the flea, "there's a horse on me!"

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Giddy and foolish all day long

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

Way down South where bananas grow

An ant stepped on an elephant's toe

The elephant cried with tears in his eyes

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Giddy and foolish all day long

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

Eli, Eli, he sells socks

A dollar a pair, a nickel a box

The longer you wear them the shorter they get

Throw'em in the water and they don't get wet.

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Giddy and foolish all day long

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

Way up North where there's ice and snow

There lived a penguin and his name was Joe

He got so tired of black and white

He wore pink pants to the dance last night!

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Giddy and foolish all day long

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

There was an old doctor and his name was Peck

Fell down the well and broke his neck

Served him right, he was doing wrong

Should have tended to the sick, and let the well alone.

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy

Giddy and foolish all day long

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

Boom, boom, ain't it great to be crazy?

Harry catches onto the tune pretty quickly, remembering having heard it before on a tv show that Dudley was watching, and starts singing along. Severus just shakes his head but it's very obvious he's trying very hard not to smile and that he's entertained. Remus doesn't hide his amusement, but doesn't sing either.

"I don't think any of you should join the school choir," Severus says, trying not to let his amusement sound in his voice, failing miserably.

Harry grins. "Oh why not! The most entertaining part about the school song is the Twins singing off key!"

"You have a point. Still, none of you can actually sing. How about we switch to a scary story?"

"Fine, but you have to tell it in your scary Professor Snape voice."

"Ohh that ought to be fun! Good idea Harry! That voice has given many a child nightmares," Dora exclaims.

"I also vote that on my birthday we end the night with a big bonfire."

"I second that," Sirius says. "We'll start closer to dinner as opposed to lunch and we'll do dinner, some Quidditch and then a big bonfire. How does that sound?"

"Perfect. Alright Severus, you ready to scare us?" 

"If I do this, none of you get any dreamless sleep tonight. You will suffer the consequences."

"Just tell the story," Remus grins.

"Alright, here it goes. This is actually an Urban Legend. Once there was a beautiful young girl who lived in a small town just south of London. Her parents had to go to town for a while, so they left their daughter home alone, but protected by her dog, which was a very large collie. The parents told the girl to lock all the windows and doors after they had left. And at about 8:00pm the parents went to town. So doing what she was told the girl shut and locked every window and every door. But there was one window in the basement that would not close completely.

Trying as best as she could she finally got the window shut, but it would not lock. So she left the window, and went back upstairs. But just to make sure that no one could get in, she put the dead-bolt lock on the basement door.

Then she sat down had some dinner and decided to go to sleep for the night. Settling down to sleep at about 12:00 she snuggled up with the dog and fell asleep.

But at one point, she suddenly woke up. She turned and looked at the clock...it was 2:30. She snuggled down again wondering what had woken her...when she heard a noise. It was a dripping sound. She thought that she had left the water running, and now it was dripping into the drain of her sink. So thinking it was no big deal she decided to go back to sleep.

But she felt nervous so she reached her hand over the edge of her bed, and let the dog lick her hand for reassurance that he would protect her. Again at about 3:45 she woke up hearing dripping. She was slightly angry now but went back to sleep anyway. Again she reached down and let the dog lick her hand. Then she fell back to sleep.

At 6:52 the girl decided that she had had enough...she got up just in time to see her parents were pulling up to the house. "Good,"she thought. "Now somebody can fix the sink...'cause I know I didn't leave it running." She walked to the bathroom and there was the collie dog, skinned and hung up on the curtain rod. The noise she heard was its blood dripping into a puddle on the floor. The girl screamed and ran to her bedroom to get a weapon, in case someone was still in the house...and there on the floor, next to her bed she saw a small note, written in blood, saying: HUMANS CAN LICK TOO, MY BEAUTIFUL."

They had all been listening intently to the story, but the way Severus says 'Humans can lick too, my beautiful' has chills running down Harry's back. It's now pitch black outside, the only light reflecting on Severus who is wearing all black, is the fire and he looks truly creepy.

"Alright, that was pretty good. I think I'm going to bed," Harry says, shivering slightly.

"Goodnight Harry."

Severus secretly follows Harry, noticing him check windows and bathrooms, before checking up on Hedwig. He grins softly, knowing Harry is more spooked by that story that he lets on. He walks back outside with a grin. "He's spooked. He checked all the windows, bathrooms and Hedwig."

Sirius gets a mischievous look on his face and sneaks inside. Once inside, he sneaks up to Harry's room and hears him getting in bed. He waits a few minutes before quietly sneaking into Harry's bathroom using a disillusionment charm. He gets behind the door and then turns the tap on to a drip. He hears Harry get out of bed and through the crack in the door he can see Harry cautiously approaching the bathroom. He cancels the charm, not noticing that Severus, Remus and Dora are outside Harry's bedroom, having guessed where he went.

Harry hears the dripping, remembering the story. He hesitates, but then he gets out of bed to check out the dripping. He doesn't notice the audience outside his bedroom door, focused completely on the bathroom. He slowly opens the door a little further and walks towards the sink. Suddenly he feels a hand on his shoulder and he jumps up in the air. "AARGH!"

He whirls around, sees Sirius and tries to calm his breathing. He hears the laughing outside his bedroom door and Sirius bend over laughing. "Sirius! That's not funny! I was about to hex you!"

"Good. Sorry, it was too good of an opportunity to just let go. You know me better than that."

"Severus!"

"Yes Harry?" 

"I want dreamless sleep. After that prank I'm never going to get to sleep!"

Severus grins and pulls out a vial. "Don't say I didn't warn you. And yes, I'm aware Sirius made it worse. Come on Sirius, let's leave him alone. We should all head to bed."

"Harry, the Dursleys are coming over tomorrow. I decided to apparate the invitation over there since both owls were already out for deliveries. They said they would be able to come tomorrow. They'll be here around 11."

"Alright. Goodnight all. Thank you for the potion Severus. Sirius, I'll get you back for this."

"Good luck trying."

Harry closes his bedroom door, letting them think he's taking the potion. He is not really all that tired, so he walks to his study and starts on his Arithmancy. Around midnight he dons his Cloak and conjures a snake. **Hi, do you want to help me? **Harry doesn't want to use Ella, not wanting Sirius to be permanently afraid of his familiar.

**You are a speaker. I will help you. **

**I'm going to put you in my father's bed. You are not allowed to bite or hurt them, I just want you to slither up his body and onto his face. He will jump up and you might fly but I'll cash cushioning charms around the bed so you won't get hurt. If you succeed I will get you big fat mice and a warm place to sleep for tonight. **

**Alright, I will help you. **

Harry picks up the snake and makes his way to Sirius room. To his surprise, Severus is standing in the hallway with a raised eyebrow. Harry puts his finger on his lips, begging Severus to stay quiet.

Severus gestures towards the door for Harry to continue. Harry pulls on his Cloak and sneaks into Sirius's room. He casts nonverbal cushioning charms and puts the snake on the bed. He grins when the snake slithers up Sirius' body. Twice Sirius stirs and makes movements that clearly indicate he feels something. When the snake tickles Sirius' nose with his tongue, and Sirius moves his hand to scratch, Harry can barely control his laughter. He senses Severus' presence behind him, clearly also watching. The snake takes it a step further and slithers full onto Sirius' face.

Harry knows the moment Sirius wakes up, the moment he realizes there's a snake on his face. Sirius jumps up screaming and jumps off the bed. Sirius' scream has Remus jumping up and reaching for his wand, only to realize it's just a snake.

"Severus?"

"It wasn't me, I'm just enjoying the show."

Harry can't control his laughter any further and pulls off his Cloak, bent over in laughter.

"What is going on in here?!" Dora says, running into the room with her wand drawn.

"Nothing, just Harry getting Sirius back. I'll show you the pensieve memory tomorrow. Now I think we really should all go back to bed. Well played Harry," Severus says, still grinning.

"How did you know to wait for me in the hallway?"

"I heard you move to your study as opposed to your bed, and I just had a feeling you'd try something after convincing everyone you were taking a sleeping potion and they don't expect it. It's the Slytherin thing to do after all. Plus while you were spooked, I didn't think you were scared enough to truly need a potion for it. Come on. Bed."

Harry walks out of the room with Severus and Dora, still laughing. "Goodnight Harry. Stay in your room please, you need sleep." 

"I know, I just had to do this."

Severus ruffles Harry's hair before walking to his own room. Dora is shaking her head. "I really hope not every night is like this." 

"It's not, we really don't do much pranking. Goodnight."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Dudley, Vernon, Petunia. Welcome to Black Manor," Harry says. Sirius and Severus had gone to get them and apparate them to Black Manor, as it is too far to drive for the Dursleys.

"Hey there Harry! This place looks amazing," Dudley says, looking around in interest. Vernon and Petunia look sceptical, but Harry sees the jealousy in their eyes.

"Why don't I show you around and then I'll have Dobby brings some tea?"

"Who is Dobby? What kind of name is that?" Petunia asks.

"Dobby is my house elf. I have to ask the both of you to keep an open mind. This is a magical home, that means portraits may talk to you, we have house elf which are magical creatures not humans, and pictures move. People can travel the way you did just now or through the fire place. We have brooms you can fly on, and I'm sure there are many other things that seem strange. Can you do that?"

Both Vernon and Petunia nod, having been told by Dudley beforehand not to screw this up for him. Harry shows them around the house and the backyard before leading them back to the living room, where Remus and Sirius are now sitting as well.

"You're house is great Harry," Dudley says, smiling.

"Thanks Dudley."

"Do you really have a secretary?"

"She is called Regent, but yes. It's necessary, trust me."

Dobby suddenly pops in with a tray of tea and biscuits, causing Vernon and Petunia to jump up faster than Harry has ever seen them move. "Vernon, Petunia, this is Dobby. Thank you Dobby." 

"You welcome Master Harry."

When Dobby disappears again, Vernon and Petunia stare at where he just was before sitting down. "Help yourself, you know how you like your tea."

Everyone starts serving themselves tea. Harry is in between Sirius and Remus, his feet up on the couch to get comfortable. He has decided not to allow his relatives to make him feel uncomfortable in his own home. He invited them because of Dudley, but he can tell they are not as happy to be here as Dudley is.

"Now that Dudley is a wizard you should consider connecting your fireplace to the floo network. It would allow him to visit with his friends, just like other wizards his age, and it is a reliable and quick way to travel. Until we are seventeen we aren't allowed to apparate, which is how you got here, so it is really the only fast magical travel available to us."

"People really come through a fire?" Petunia asks, looking extremely skeptical.

"Sure. I know it sounds odd, but it's nod. Let me demonstrate."

Knowing that he's always welcome to floo to the Burrow without needing an invitation, having been told as much, Harry grabs a handful of floo powder, drops it into the fire and disappears. He can see the shock and horror on their faces when he steps into the fire and steps out at the Burrow, not able to control his laughing.

"Harry? What are you doing here?" Ron asks, seeing Harry.

"Hi Ron. Dudley's parents are at the Manor and I'm demonstrating floo travel. You should have seen the looks on their faces!"

"Harry! You come to hang out with us!"

"No, sorry guys! I'm just demonstrating floo travel. I have to get back so they can see how fast it is. Reply to Dora's letter so we can schedule hanging out! Bye!"

Harry floo's back, Vernon and Petunia still in a state of shock.

"How far away was the place you just went?" Vernon finally asks.

"I went to a friend's house. It's a couple hundred miles from here. I talked to them for a minute to explain what I was doing and then came back."

"You were gone for barely a minute."

"Yes, that is why you should connect your fireplace. My friend Hermione, her parent's aren't magical either and they connected their fireplace for her."

"We'll think about it," Petunia finally says.

"So Dudley, want to go flying before lunch?"

"Sure, I want to show mom and dad. I'm not any good but Harry here is amazing on a broom. He was the youngest player in a century at school. And did you know that he's a hero and basically like a celebrity in our world?"

Harry grins at Sirius and Remus while Dudley continues to give his parents a rundown of Harry's life and why he's important, while they walk outside. Harry summons two brooms, wandless and nonverbal just because he can, and hands one to Dudley.

"Nice Harry. Mom, dad, most people can't do what he just did without a wand or without saying the spell. Harry is really powerful and really good at magic. I can't do that spell at all yet."

"You'll learn it this year, it's a fourth year spell. Come on, let's fly. We only have an hour until lunch."

With that Harry takes off into the sky, waiting for Dudley to join him. "Want to pass the Quaffle or chase the snitch?"

"Not really. Why don't you chase the snitch and I'll just fly."

"That's fine." Harry lands, and pulls his snitch out of his pocket, the wings flapping immediately. He puts it on expert and then shows it to Vernon and Petunia. "We have a sport called Quidditch. You see those three big hoops? Throwing a large ball called a Quaffle through it is 10 points. This little ball, the snitch, is very fast and sneaky. The Seeker's only job in the game is to find it, and then catch it. It's worth 150 points and the game doesn't end until it's caught. I'm the Seeker on my House team. This is a practice snitch which I've set to expert level. There are seven players per team. Three Chasers, who try to score with the Quaffle, two Beaters who have bats and try to keep balls called Bludgers away from the players, one Keeper to protect the hoops and one Seeker. Bludgers are balls that attack the players and try to knock them off their broom. Does that make a little bit of sense?"

Vernon and Petunia nod, meanwhile seeing their son high up in the air on a broomstick. "Dudley doesn't want to throw a Quaffle or play catch the snitch, but he said I should so I'm going to release it and then try to find and catch it while Dudley just flies."

With that Harry releases the snitch, waits a minute and then takes off again. He spots it fairly quickly and sets in to chase it. The practice snitch at expert level moves in such a way that it requires Harry to make some daring moves but also to practice a variety of moves that he might need at some point. He catches the snitch half an hour later and grins at Dudley.

"Way to go Harry. I think you've stunned my parents."

Harry looks down and sees Vernon and Petunia, slack jawed staring up at him. Sirius whistles and they come down. "It's time for lunch. Well done Harry."

"Thanks. I love expert level, it really forces me to try new things and learn new moves."

They all start walking inside, Vernon and Petunia with a little encouragement to move by Dudley who is trying to hide his amusement. He knows he had the same expression on his face the first time, but seeing it on someone else is entertaining.

Because they have guests they eat in the dining room, and Dobby serves large platters of food. Harry has to admit he's clearly trying to impress the Dursleys because he's put out the finest china and made an elaborate lunch, more elaborate than usual. They've been seated for a few minutes when Severus and Dora join them.

"Vernon. Petunia. Good to see you again."

"Severus," Petunia says. "Won't the food get cold if we wait?"

"No, it has heating charms on the platters and trays so the food stays warm. Putting the charms on the food makes it lose some of the taste and texture, but that's not the case if you put it on the serving dish. Go ahead and help yourself, now that we're all here."

"Who made this?"

"Dobby. He does the cooking and cleaning."

"He can cook?"

"He is a great cook," Harry says, starting to serve himself food. Everyone else soon follows. Vernon and Petunia look skeptical but finally hunger wins over and they serve themselves some of everything. Harry holds back his grin when he sees Vernon liking the food, and serving himself seconds and even thirds.

"Did you get all your potions done Severus?"

"Yes, I just finished. I've also replenished our private stock and added a few we didn't have."

Harry raises his eyebrow at that. "What time did you get up?"

"Fairly early. I was thinking, if you'd like, I can take you all to Diagon Alley after lunch. Maybe we can all go. As long as Vernon and Petunia touch a magical person when crossing through the barrier at the Leaky Cauldron they will be able to see everything once there. It works the same at Hogwarts, which is how muggle parents are able to come to school events and graduation. They can see this Manor because we apparated them in."

"That would be nice, they could see a lot more and learn a lot more about the magical world. Do you want to do that?"

"What is Diagon Alley?"

"It is a shopping street completely for wizards and witches. It's where our bank is and where we buy everything we need. Dudley, most wizarding items won't work in your house because electricity and electronics interfere with magic, so this way they might be able to get an idea of everything."

"I'd like to show you mum and dad. I also want to show you Gringotts, the bank. It is awesome. They have goblins that work there, and you take a cart that's almost like a rollercoaster down to your vault. They have actual underground vaults where you keep your money, not just virtual bank accounts."

"I suppose we could go there," Petunia says. "Lily always talked about it when she came back."

"Gringotts is also where you would go to exchange pounds for galleons when you go to get Dudley's school things after he gets his supply list. It's about one galleon for 5 pounds, depending a little bit on the value of a pound at the time. He'll need about 100 galleons for everything if he needs new robes."

Vernon nods, understanding what Harry is telling him. "If you hook up to the floo network you can floo to the Leaky Cauldron, or you can simply drive to London and walk in."

"Thanks Harry. This food is even better than at Hogwarts."

Harry grins. "I know, Dobby is a pretty amazing cook. I'm going to go change so we can leave right after lunch."

Harry knows that when he's out and about he has to look like a Lord, even if he's just wearing good quality casual clothes. A lot of wizards still frown upon jeans and tshirts, and he doesn't want to offend anyone. It doesn't take him long to change and he walks back down. "Are we apparating or taking the floo?"

"Let's take the floo so Vernon and Petunia can experience it. Dudley has never used it either. They can only use it if someone magical throws the floo powder in and says the destination. Sirius, Remus, why don't you go first so you can help them at the other end."

Soon they are all floo'ing to the Leaky Cauldron. When Harry comes through, he sees Sirius casting cleaning charms on Vernon, Petunia and Dudley before doing it on himself. "Alright, let's go," Severus says as he's the last one through. Dora has decided to stay home and work instead.

Harry and Dudley lead the way, tapping the bricks where needed to open the passage. "Anywhere you want to go Dudley?"

"Not really. I have everything I need for all my summer work. We should start at Gringotts."

Harry nods and the group slowly makes their way down the alley. "Sirius, I want to show them a vault but I don't want them to see Dudley's. Do you have a suggestion?"

"Ask Severus if he's alright with you showing the Prince Heir vault. It's probably your smallest one."

"I didn't even know I had one. Alright."

"That's fine Harry," Severus says. "I heard what Sirius said. That's actually a good idea."

It doesn't take them long to get to Gringotts. Vernon and Petunia are impressed with the building, but hesitant when it comes to the goblins. "Good morning Griphook. I'd like to access the Prince Heir vault please."

"Key please."

Severus produces the key, grinning at Harry. "I hadn't had a chance to give that to you yet. It's yours now."

"You do realize you didn't have to do that, right?"

"I'm aware but I did it anyway."

"We can only fit four in a cart, so do you all mind if I take Vernon, Petunia and Dudley?" Harry asks.

"You may fit five to a cart and I'm coming," Severus says.

Vernon almost refuses to get into the cart, but one look from Dudley and he gets in. Harry has the feeling that Dudley told his dad to behave and try new things while in the wizarding world. When Griphook opens the door, Harry's jaw drops. "Severus!"

"Don't even start. This is a standard Heir vault for a Noble House. Just because it's there, doesn't mean you have to use it all."

"I don't need this."

"I know, but you are my Heir and you will have an Heir Vault. No arguments unless you want to spend the evening writing lines about graciously accepting gifts?"

Harry grumbles some more, but knows Severus is right. A raised eyebrow from Severus has him stop grumbling and he grabs three coins before turning to Vernon and Petunia. He doesn't like the smirk on Vernon's face. "I see at least someone can keep you in line."

"Keep in mind I can blast you over that ledge and nobody will know except those here, and I can just alter their memory to forget. Now this is a galleon, this is a sickle and this is a knut. They obviously have different values, Dudley knows the difference. All vaults look like this, people also keep valuables and heirlooms in theirs. The further down you go the higher the security. My Black and Potter family vaults are deep down, past the dragon."

"Dragon?"

"Yes, dragon. Alright, you've seen it. Let's go, I want to stop at Honeydukes to get chocolate."

Harry drops the coins before they make their way out. He feels the soft swat Severus gives him but doesn't respond. He knows it's just a reminder to keep his temper, they both know it won't be the last stupid thing Vernon says. Once they are back in the lobby, Vernon and Petunia both sigh in relief. "I prefer our banks, none of the scary rides and damp underground vaults."

"Dudley, have you shown your parents wizarding candy?" Harry asks, completely ignores Vernon.

"No, not yet. I want to get some things though."

Harry nods and they cross the alley and into the sweet shop. Vernon looks around in interest at the walls filled with sweets he doesn't recognize. Both Harry and Dudley start filling up their basket with toffees, truffles, chocolate frogs, every flavor beans, sugar quills and anything else they can find. "Vernon, Petunia, do you want anything?" 

"No."

Harry takes Dudley's basket from him and heads to the register to pay. He hands Dudley his bag when he's done, ignoring the protests. "Anything else you want to see?"

"Quidditch store? They could see what all is involved in the sport and they have little models that show short games."

"Good idea."

Sirius, Remus and Severus all groan, knowing they'll be in that store for a while. They turn out to be right, especially when Harry sees the new Firebolt 2 has just come out. He just stares at it in amazement. "No buying anything Harry. You have a birthday coming up. Whatever you want but don't get you can consider buying later."

Harry glares at Sirius, especially since he was very tempted to buy the broom. Dudley is over at a display case explaining Quidditch to his parents, before leading them to the wall that has all the different models brooms. "As you can see there is a lot that goes into this."

"Hmm. I'm ready to go home," Petunia says.

Harry nods, amazed that they've lasted this long. "Sirius and Remus can apparate you guys."

They all start walking to the apparition point just outside the Leaky Cauldron. "Thanks for inviting us Harry. We'll see you on your birthday?"

"Yes, you'll get an invitation. Thanks for coming!"

Severus apparates Harry home, and Dora immediately ushers him into his office. "Here are the invitations for your birthday. Here is the list of people invited. Please look at the list and at the invitations and see if anyone needs added. Then please sign the invitations."

Harry gives Severus a bemused look. "I can't even have a cup of tea first?"

Dobby pops in with tea, grinning. "Well I suppose that solves that. Let's look at this list shall we."

"This looks fine, but please make one for Mr. Filch. I know, he's not a pleasant person but it would be really helpful if he was on our side instead of always trying to block everything I do. Mr. Filch and Mrs. Norris could be really useful, they know the entire castle and know how to prowl around better than any of us. He probably always gets left out, so this might go a long way even if he doesn't come. I see you have the Weasleys, but please make separate ones to Percy, Bill and Charlie as they no longer live at home. I know we normally don't do that, but Charlie is a good friend and if we send a separate one to Charlie we can't leave out Bill and Percy. Besides that I can't think of anyone else. You really want me to sign all of these?"

"Yes. They will know the invitation is simply copied but a trained eye can see the difference between an original and a copied signature."

Harry grabs a self inked quill and fills it with his official black with silver ink. He starts signing the invitations, and Dora starts putting them in envelopes as soon as he finishes one and the signature is dry. "Thank you Harry, I know you didn't want to do that but now I can get them sent off. Everyone knows when your birthday is but it's still polite to send an invitation well in advance so people can make plans. The invitations are portkeys that only those named on the invitation can use. As you can see each invitation has a specific time on it so not everyone arrives at exactly the same time. This is more for safety than anything else. Everyone invited will be expecting this, and it's also charmed so nobody will remember where the party was afterwards. I think Sirius said it's the same spells as last year?"

"That makes sense. Anything else?"

"I heard from the Weasleys, you are going there the day after tomorrow. Apparently their Aunt Muriel is visiting tomorrow and they did not think you'd want to be there at the same time. The day after that is the Wizengamot elections. Did you send in your nominations?"

"No, I'm not sure where those papers went."

Dora sighs before walking over to the box on the corner of his desk. "This is your inbox. Anything you receive in the mail that I need you to look at is in this. Anything you need sent out or need me to look at you put in this other box and it will appear on my desk. Your inbox is linked to one on my desk. Here are the forms for the nominations. You have one form for each of your seats, you simply fill out a name of who you want to nominate. Each person nominated gets added to the ballot for voting. It's done by magic, so nobody will know who's nominated until the elections, the parchment that records the nominations is under heavy spells that can't be broken. You don't have to send this parchment anywhere, you just write on it and it will flare blue when it's been recorded. Most people burn the paper after that since it'll be useless. Your nominations are due today."

"Does all my mail go through you?"

"Yes. In fact, all the mail that goes to any of you goes through me. I have small mailboxes just outside my office for Sirius, Remus and Severus that I put their mail in. It's to avoid you all being interrupted by owls all day long. If an owl come while I'm not in my office, it will wait there until I return. The mailboxes are charmed so that if you guys are at Hogwarts, I can spell it to send whatever I put in it immediately to a small mailbox inside your rooms at Hogwarts. You won't get owls there anymore either. Everything from Gringotts now comes here instead of to your warded mailbox. You will keep your warded box, since Gringotts will continue sending their correspondence directly to you, but all your regular mail that gets screened by Gringotts will now come here instead."

"So the mail ward that I have with Gringotts has been re-directed, but my mail from Gringotts hasn't?"

"Correct. And Hedwig now knows not to deliver anything straight to you, and she is the only owl who can deliver anything that does not go through Gringotts, all your other mail still gets screened before coming here."

"Good, I wouldn't want you to get anything harmful. Gringotts sends me a report with everything they've blocked, and they keep traces on it in case there are any patterns, and you'd be amazed what people try to send. Most of it is love potions and spells."

"It doesn't surprise me. And if you are worried about confidentiality, Gringotts charmed my employment contract so I'm under a wizard's oath that I can't share anything with anyone unless I have your express permission. I believe they sent you a letter about it, but it would be in your personal mailbox from them."

"Oh that's good. I trust you but it never hurts. Now I'm going to go relax and have tea and pretend I'm a normal fourteen year old."

Harry grabs his mug of tea and walks outside, plopping down in one of the comfortable chairs on the porch. He loves his life, but he's also fourteen and now that he's not in school he realizes how much responsibility comes with being a Lord.

"Hi Harry."

"Hi Henry, I didn't realize you were here."

"I came to talk to you about something, and to discuss a date for you and Eric to spend time together with your Regent. I have to say I am glad you hired Dora, I was going to suggest that if you didn't."

"Is something wrong?"

"Maybe and maybe not. Dumbledore has filed a lawsuit against you for slander and to get his removal as Headmaster overthrown. He knows there are elections for Supreme Mugwump and knows he can't get that back even if he tried"

"Seriously? We had prove that he did what he did, and for slander you have to be able to show there was no evidence, right?"

"Correct. He won't win, we have too much evidence, but I wanted to let you know because it will likely be in the papers."

"Wonderful. I'm going on vacation, hopefully this will be resolved before then."

"Actually, his hearing is set for July 30th."

"You've got to be kidding. Let me guess, I have to be there?"

"Unfortunately, you do. It's an hour before Neville's birthday party so hopefully it's done quickly. Since it's a preliminary hearing to see if there should be a trial, it will be before a panel of three with the Supreme Mugwump presiding. Those selected for the panel have to have a law degree and be members of the Wizengamot, but they can't be a member of the Sacred Twenty Eight since you are a member of that and it would be considered conflict of interest. Nobody will know who they are until we get there, to prevent bribery."

"I suppose that makes sense. I'm assuming you already told Dora the date?"

"Yes, I gave her the court summons. Where are you going on vacation?"

"All I've been told is it will start in Amsterdam and we'll end in Rome."

"That's very vague."

"I am aware of that. They simply won't tell me. I'm not worried, I'm sure it will be amazing regardless."

"I don't doubt that. Plus you can't be all work no play, right?"

"Right. Are you going anywhere this summer?"

"No, I rarely ever have the time and Sara is not big on travelling. She takes the kids on day trips, but she doesn't like leaving the country. I need to get going, I promised Eric I'd help build this model airplane he got for his birthday. Let me know if you need anything."

"I will. Thank you."

Harry summons a book he had been reading and spends the rest of the afternoon reading. He finds it relaxing, and while immersing himself in the life of the detective who is trying to solve a mysterious murder he completely forgets about everything that's happening the world around him. And that's exactly how he wants it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry! Come on, we have to show you something!" Fred says as soon as Harry steps through the floo. They start to make their way up the stairs when Molly stops them.

"I don't think so. You are not running off and hiding all day again with Harry. Find something Ginny and Ron can participate in."

"But mum it's important!"

"I don't care. Ron and Ginny have not seen him in a long time and you do not have monopoly on his time."

Fred and George sigh and Harry tries to hide his disappointment. The Twins had owled him about a new invention they had and he really wanted to see it. They walk back down where Ron immediately suggests Quidditch. Harry grabs his broom, which he had brought just in case, and heads outside.

They fly for a while, and while Harry enjoys it, he would much rather be doing something else. When Molly calls them in for lunch he actually gets excited, as Molly's cooking has always been good. He sees that Arthur, Bill and Charlie have come home for lunch as well and greets them.

Harry casts his detection charms, but when he casts it on his drink he immediately casts a containment over it so nobody can do anything to it. He casts a Patronus and sends it to Severus. Everyone is looking at him in confusion, especially when they notice Harry is about to lose his temper. When Severus comes through the floo, they get even more confused.

"Harry?" Arthur asks.

"Severus, please test this drink. There's something in it. It flared red when I tested it."

Severus glares before taking the cup and casting spells on it. "It's a love potion."

Harry immediately stands up. "Who put this in my drink."

Nobody answers so Harry looks at Arthur. "Permission to cast tracing spell?"

"Permission granted. The person responsible will be dealt with, this is unacceptable."

Harry casts the tracing spell on the cup, which will cast a green line to the person who brewed the potion and a red line to the person who put the potion in the drink. Harry is not surprised when he sees that Molly and Ginny are responsible.

Harry doesn't even have time to get angry before Arthur stands up. "How could you! Harry is a friend! House Black has an alliance of friendship with House Weasley! Do you have any idea what you've done? This is political and social suicide if this leaks out! Both of you, my study, NOW!"

Arthur shares a look with Bill, who nods, before pushing his wife and daughter towards his study. "Lord Black, I would like to formally apologize on behalf of House Weasley."

"Don't worry Bill, I'm not going to press charges and I'm not going to the press. Your family did nothing wrong, your mother and sister did. I accept your apology." Harry banishes the drink and potion.

"Harry? I'm sorry. I'd understand if you didn't want to hang out here anymore," Fred says.

Harry sees everyone except Ron nodding in agreement. He had also noticed that Ron was the only one who didn't look surprised or angry. "You knew, didn't you?"

Ron, having always been a terrible liar, turns bright red. Nobody needs him to answer, that's the answer. "Wonderful. You apologized after turning your back on me, I was willing to give you another chance and now this?"

"I'm sorry Harry. It wasn't my idea."

"No but you didn't stop it either. For goodness sake, I have a boyfriend!"

"You should break up with him! You were supposed to be mine!" Ginny yells, as they are coming back into the room. Arthur grabs her by the arm, gives her a hard smack on the behind and points upstairs. "To your room. Now! You can stay there until I tell you it's alright to come out. Move!"

Molly's face is bright red, and Harry has no doubt Arthur did some serious yelling. He had felt the privacy spells go up, and he has never seen Arthur this angry. "Father, House Black has accepted our apology and declares House Weasley blameless. House Black places responsibility with mother and Ginerva." Bill says formally.

"Thank you House Black. Now, I have to admit I'm not entirely sure how to handle this."

Everyone is sitting down again, and Severus sends a message to Sirius and Remus to let them know what is going on. To nobody's surprise, Sirius and Remus come through the floo almost immediately.

"I think Fred, George and Charlie should be excused. They are not involved in this," Harry says. "Sorry guys, I'll have you over to Black Manor some time this summer so we can actually have a fun day."

Arthur nods in agreement and the three leave. "Why?" Harry asks, looking directly at Molly.

"You were supposed to be with Ginny," Molly says.

"Why? Why can't I love who I want to love?"

"Dumbledore said he'd make certain. He said he'd make sure and he'd prepare a marriage contract."

"It's not his place to do. So Ginny was raised believing I would be hers?"

Molly just nods. "I see. You need to make it clear to her that I will never be hers, especially not after today. Also, I understand you brew the healing potions for this family but I want both Molly and Ginny banned from brewing anything. I don't care how you do that. Severus, would you be willing to brew a couple basic healing potions for the Weasleys to use?"

"Certainly. I brew big batches every summer, a few extra won't make a difference."

"Thank you. Also, the family invitation for my birthday now no longer includes Ron, Molly and Ginny. I want it to be a good day, and I do not think they will be able to control themselves especially since Viktor will be there. Based on Ginny's reaction she will not be able to control herself, and I do not trust her to stay here if she's alone."

"I fully understand Harry. Why Ron? Is there anything I can do to make up for this?"

"No, and you shouldn't have to. I don't think I will be back at the Burrow anytime soon, but you are all welcome at Black Manor with the exception of Molly and Ginny. Contact Dora to schedule it. And if I ever find any of them do anything against me again, I will press charges and it will include today's incident. And Ron because he was aware of what they were doing and didn't stop it. I forgave him for everything this past year, I told him it would take time to become friends again, but apparently he'd let a friend be poisoned with a love potion."

"Ronald Weasley! I can't believe you knew and didn't do anything! To your room, now. You can stay up there for a while."

"Once again, I apologize."

"It's not your apology I'm waiting for. You might want to consider having everyone tested for compulsions, just in case. I'm going home, I hope our next meeting will be better."

Harry gets up and floos home, soon followed by his guardians. "Harry? What happened? Everyone just ran out of here like the house was on fire," Dora asks, looking concerned.

"Molly and Ginny tried to give me a love potion."

Harry hears Dora's gasp of shock but he ignores it. Instead he walks to the kitchen, considering he still hasn't had lunch. "Dobby? A light lunch please."

"Dobby? We're all ready for lunch now," Sirius says. "We hadn't eaten yet either," he explains to Harry.

"Why can't I just have an uneventful day?"

"You can. Yesterday you did Arithmancy all day, I'd say that's as uneventful as you can get."

That gets a laugh out of Harry. "point made. I saw a stack of correspondence in my inbox when I walked past my office so I think I'm going to take care of that after lunch. I need something boring to get me to calm down. The only thing preventing me from exploding is Occlumency and I fear if I go flying right now the adrenaline will be too much."

"Make sure you write to Lord Peterson so he knows what happens. Include a copy of your memory so we have evidence should we ever need, which I hope we don't."

Harry just nods, returning to the soup Dobby has put in front of him. As soon as he finishes he walks into his office and shuts the door, not wanting to talk to anyone.

"Should we be worried?" Severus asks.

"No, I think he just needs time for himself. If he hasn't come out by dinner time we'll go get him. I know Dora has been busy and there's quite a bit of correspondence for him to take care off. I heard her muttering about invitations and why does everyone need something at the same time. I have a feeling that now that word is out that Harry has a Regent, and is therefore taking up full duties associated with being a Lord as opposed to not doing much while at school, everyone wants something from him," Sirius says.

"I'm going to work on some lesson plans in the library," Remus says

"I'll join you."

"Same here. I want to make some changes to the class structure, and encourage inter-house cooperation somehow. Now that I don't have to pretend anymore I want to anonymity in my classroom to stop," Severus says.

That afternoon everyone is busy working. Harry is amazed by the sheer amount of invitations he's gotten. Dora has included a note with each one whether it would fit in his schedule or not, and what else he has on that same day already, so he can determine whether to accept or decline. Harry puts an accept or decline note on each and sends them back to Dora to send the formal RSVP. Before he realizes it he gets a note from Dora that it's dinner time, and he sighs. He has to admit that working like that for a couple hours really helped calm him down and he walks to dinner with a smile. Who knew work could be so therapeutic?

"Want to go flying after dinner?"

"Sure!" Sirius says with a grin, happy that Harry is in better spirits.

In the end everyone ends up flying. They don't play any particular game, just passing the Quaffle. When Harry finally calls it quits, knowing the next day will be a long one with the elections, Severus walks in with him. "I'm proud of you Harry. You have to deal with more than any fourteen year old ever should, and you do it without complaining. On top of that, the way you held your temper earlier and found something calming to do really impressed me."

Harry smiles at Severus and gives him a hug when they get to his bedroom. "I felt really bad for Arthur and the rest of the Weasleys. I knew I couldn't blow up, it would have destroyed their home. I knew Molly, Ginny and Ron had ulterior motives but I never expected a love potion, especially after the alliance was made and they knew it could ruin their whole family. And the work really was calming. It was something methodical that didn't require a lot of deep thought, but just enough to provide a distraction. And it needed done before I can go on vacation so it worked out."

"Still, I'm proud of you. After the circus tomorrow will be we get to go on vacation and forget about everything."

"I'm looking forward to it. Goodnight."

"Night Harry."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The moment Harry steps into the Atrium at the Ministry reporters are on him. His guardians help him get through the crowds. Dressed in solid black dress robes, they all look formidable and like a united front. Which is exactly why they are all wearing the same color. They make it to the Wizengamot meeting room without too much interference, and Harry finds his seat. His proxies know who to vote for, and he is ready to sit back and watch the proceedings. He greets the wizards and witches around him politely, and realizes that Sirius having forced him to memorize whose seats are where is helping him address everyone properly. At the time he had hated it, and even threw a tantrum over it when he was struggling, but now he's thankful for Sirius' persistence. Not that he'll ever tell Sirius that.

Normally the Supreme Mugwump leads the meeting, but in this situation it is the job of the Minister as the only one in the room not allowed to vote, with the exception of the court scribe Percy but he can't do both. It is a closed meeting, and the reporters have to wait outside. As soon as the doors close and get sealed, the Minister turns to all the members.

"Good morning everyone! Today we choose our new leader. You should have all put in your nominations, and in a few seconds the spells on this box will expire and the list will be revealed. The top three names in number of nominations will be on the ballot for voting. As soon as the ballot is revealed, each of those candidates will have the opportunity to say a few words. After that, ballots will be distributed and you will use your magical signature to select your choice. The tally is automatic, and as soon as everyone here today has voted, I will reveal the winner. Any questions before we begin?"

Nobody asks any questions, and the Minister opens the box. He pulls out the list, and his eyes grow wide. "Well this is highly unusual. It appears, everyone who nominated someone nominated the same person. There is no need for a vote, so please join me in congratulating Lord Abbott as the new Supreme Mugwump! Lord Abbott, if you would like to say a few words?"

"Thank you Minister. I must say this is a bit of a surprise. I personally did not put in a nomination, as I was unable to choose between several highly qualified individuals. I accept the nomination and I accept the election. I will lead the Wizengamot with honesty and fairness. Thank you for your vote of confidence."

There is applause and then people start getting up, knowing the meeting is over. Nobody expected to be done so soon, and nobody is in a hurry to leave. Harry had initially planned to put Lady Bones down as his choice, but then realized that having both the Head of the DMLE and the Supreme Mugwump in an Alliance of Friendship, and having them be two different people so that conflict of interest is less of an issue, would be more beneficial. He had never met Lord Abbott before earlier that week, but he realized he was a very kind, honest man and he really liked him.

"If we're done early, does that mean we get to go on vacation early?" Harry asks Severus softly.

"That's not a bad idea. Let's congratulate Lord Abbott and then pull a disappearing act."

Harry grins, knowing the 'disappearing act' will simply be them pushing their way through the crowd of reporters while ignore them, and follow Severus over to Lord Abbott. It doesn't take them long to meet Sirius and Remus at the front of the room, and with a quick nod they open the door. Immediately cameras start flashing and questions are shouted, mostly because the meeting is done much sooner than any reporter expected. With Sirius in front of him and Severus and Remus on either side, they quickly make their way through and apparate home.

"I'm surprised it was unanimous," Harry says.

"To be honest, I'm not," Sirius says. "Lord Abbott has never wronged anyone and is incredibly polite and honest. He has an impeccable reputation, and with most of the Death Eaters in prison the ones who would have opposed him weren't there. During the last election there were only three nominees; Dumbledore, Lord Abbott and Lucius Malfoy. It was a tie between Lord Abbott and Dumbledore, so they had everyone vote a second time with only those two options. All the Death Eaters wanted to avoid Dumbledore winning and voted Lord Abbott, but apparently some Lord Abbott voters changed their minds because Dumbledore won by a single vote. Let's change into comfortable clothes and then leave, I believe Dobby finished packing already."

"Perfect. Amsterdam first, right?"

"Yes. There is a portkey there every half hour so we can simply go there and take the next available one. Wear Muggle clothing."

Harry nods and runs up the stairs to change. He puts on comfortable jeans and a shirt with sneaker. He sees his small trunk next to his bed, fully packed. He had kept his small trunk to take on vacations, and his big one just for school. He shrinks the trunk and puts it in his pocket. He runs back down the stairs, only slowing down when he sees Severus' raised eyebrow. He has to wait a few more minutes before Sirius and Remus join them. When they get to the portkey they are the only ones travelling to Amsterdam at that time so they don't have to wait very long.

When they walk out of the room they portkeyed into they realize they are at Central Station. Harry looks around in amazement, realizing how old the building must be. When they walk outside he looks back and quickly pulls out his camera and starts taking pictures.

The walk down the road, all looking around in excitement. Severus has been to Amsterdam before and appears to know where he is going. He pass by a large open square with a huge building on one side and what looks like a monument on the other. "On the left is the war monument. On the right is the Royal Palace. The Royal Family no longer lives there and is usually on there on Memorial Day when there is a big ceremony right here by the monument to remember those who died in the war. Let's go check in to the hotel, drop off our luggage and then we can explore. It's just up the street there," Severus explains.

The other's just nod and keep walking. Harry looks up at the hotel before they walk in, and sees that it's called De L'Europe. Severus does all the talking and soon they have keys to three rooms. "Alright, Sirius here is the key for you and Remus. Harry this is yours. Your room is in between mine and theirs. I will be casting charms that alert all three of us if you leave the room or if someone enters it. Your are to keep the lock and deadbolt on the door at all times and cast a locking charm as soon as you're inside. Do not open the door for anyone. They only have one bedroom suites, and the penthouse has six bedrooms which wasn't necessary either so this was the better option. I'm placing my trust in you to obey and stay in your room once we retire for the night. You are welcome in our rooms, but when it's time for bed you go to bed and stay there. This will be the case at several places that we're staying, and if you disobey us in this I will gladly move you into my room and transfigure a chair into a cot for you to sleep on after paddling your backside to ensure sleeping is most uncomfortable. Is that clear?"

"Geez Severus. All you had to say was 'Harry please stay in your room and don't open the door for anyone' and I would have listened. I know perfectly well what would happen if I disobeyed and I want to enjoy this trip. Now can we go see our rooms?"

Sirius and Remus quickly walk ahead to the elevators, clearly amused. They agree with Harry that Severus didn't need to lecture him, but they also understand why Severus did so they wisely stay quiet. All their rooms look out over the city and Harry loves his. It's done in blue tones and is fairly large with a big King size bed in the middle. It looks very modern and he's excited to try the TV and other Muggle electronics. As soon as he has re-sized his trunk he meets the others in the hallway. "This is a really nice hotel."

"Yes it is. It is five stars and one of the most luxurious ones in the city. I figured if we're going to do this trip we're going to do it right. Let's head out. We can look at the monument and then maybe find somewhere to have lunch outside? The square around the monument has several restaurants and we can decide what we want to do today. Harry, we are here two days. We have the rest of the day today and all day tomorrow. The day after that we leave but we can still do things in the morning if there's more things you want to see here. I have a book with things to do here. When we leave here we won't leave the Netherlands. We are going to see some windmills first and then we're heading to Italy. In Italy we're going to visit Florence, Venice and Rome."

Harry looks excited. "I've wanted to visit all of those!"

"Good. We wanted to visit Berlin as well, but we decided to spend a little bit longer in each of these cities instead, knowing we can go on many more holidays. At some point we want to visit Brussels, Paris, Spain and Portugal. We know you want to go to Bulgaria. Then we can cross the ocean and see the United States and South America. Maybe venture into Canada. Then we still haven't been to Scandinavia, Africa, Asia, New Zealand or Australia. There are so many places to visit in this world, and all of them special. We have our whole lives to visit them, there's no need to rush."

"I want to see the Anne Frank house while we're here," Remus says. "I learned about it in primary school. When wizards go into hiding they can expand space and cast privacy charms and the Fidelius if needed or make the property unplottable. Muggles can't do that and the way this family had to live in the war is just an incredible story."

"My teacher told us a little about that too," Harry says. "That sounds interesting. Maybe we can do that this afternoon. What is that line for?"

Severus looks at where Harry is pointing and smiles. "It's Madame Tussaud's. It is a wax museum. They have made replicas of famous people completely out of wax. It really is quite well done and it's a popular place to visit. Most people take pictures with the statues inside."

"That sounds odd. I'll pass on that. I really like this monument, it's pretty."

"This square is called Dam Square. This monument was built in 1956. It is a World War II monument and every year at 8 PM on May 4th, the Dutch commemorate the casualties of war. The Netherlands was liberated on May 5th 1945, and that day is a day of celebration. There are festivals all over the country and everyone celebrates the freedom the country gained that day."

They all walk around the monument, looking at the detail. Harry makes sure to take pictures, and he also turns around and takes pictures of the Royal Palace, which is an imposing building.

"The Royal Palace was initially built as a City Hall in 1655. Later, it became the Royal Palace under King Napoleon and later the Dutch Royal Family. The Queen of the Netherlands, Queen Beatrix, resides in The Hague (AN: this is correct based on when this story takes place. The current King of The Netherlands is King Willem-Alexander and he lives in Wassenaar with his family) which is also where she has what is called her working Palace which is where she actually works. The Royal Palace is open for visitors if you want to go inside and look around. There is another Palace and a Castle open for visitors in the Netherlands but we'll have to visit those another time."

"I'd like that."

"Alright, let's go have lunch and then we can visit the Royal Palace. We should the Anne Frank house early tomorrow to try and beat the crowds. It's small inside and the quieter it is the more time you have to truly look around."

They find an empty table and soon they have all ordered sandwiches. Harry, upon recommendation by Severus, has ordered what is called a Kroket on white bread. He has no idea what to expect, but when it is served (and Severus shows him it's easier to eat if he cuts the kroket in half so it doesn't roll off and covers his whole slice of bread) and he tries it, he realizes it's delicious. "We need to have this at home. It's deep fried, I wonder if Dobby can do that? We'll have to ask him when we can do that. We've never had anything fried so I don't even know if he knows."

"Ask him, I'm pretty sure that elf would do anything if you asked," Sirius grins.

"Good point. So Severus, how come you are so familiar with everything here?"

"During my Potions Mastery in France I met someone from The Netherlands. He lived here in Amsterdam and I visited him a few times."

"Cool. I really like this city. I love how all the rooftops are different and the buildings are so old. I saw a map of the city at the hotel and there are canals everywhere."

"I think we should do a boat tour tonight. The city is beautiful from the water, and at night you can see it with all the lights."

It doesn't take them long to finish lunch and they walk over to the Palace. The spend hours inside, looking at everything in interest. When they come out Remus suggest dinner so they can eat calmly before taking a boat tour.

It is an exhausted Harry who falls into bed later that night. The boat tour was incredible. He got to see a lot of the city and hear the stories behind a lot of things. Afterwards they had strolled through the city, just taking it all in. He tried to talk Sirius into visiting the Red Light district, which had earned him a stern lecture from Severus. The excuse that he wasn't going to do anything, just wanted to walk through, was apparently not good enough. After Severus was done Sirius had leaned down and whispered in his ear that he would take him once he was of age as long as he didn't go before then. Severus of course had heard and promptly cuffed Sirius on the back of the head.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Severus meanwhile is laying on his bed thinking. He's not sure why but he feels on edge. He knows it's why he lectured Harry when they arrived at the hotel and why he overreacted to the Red Light District. He doesn't know where it's coming from. He needs to count to ten before lecture or scolding Harry, not wanting to ruin the vacation. He has a feeling it's from wanting to protect Harry from everything that could hurt him out there, especially in an new, unknown environment. At Black Manor they are unplottable. At Hogwarts they are under incredibly strong safety wards. This is the first time Harry is in a different room, not in the same suite or the same condo, and he's worried something will happen and they won't find out until it's too late. With that thought, he finally falls asleep, but it's a restless sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"What do you think is wrong with Severus? He's stricter than normal," Sirius asks, turning to face Remus.

"I think he's worried something might happen, and he's not sure how to handle those feelings. I know in Venice and Florence we have an apartment so I don't think it'll be an issue there but I think we need to change the arrangements for Rome and see about finding something different so we're all together or Harry is at least with Severus instead of by himself. I'm sure Harry likes the independence this gives him, but I also think it's going to drive Severus crazy."

"We'll mention it to Severus, I'm sure he can change the reservations in Rome. He made them after all, I'm surprised he did it this way."

"I don't think he expected to react the way he did. I have to admit I really hope Harry doesn't sneak out, because we both know Severus will make good on his threat."

"I don't think he will sneak out. He has really grown up the past couple months, he's definitely not the same defiant teenager we saw last year. Last year he alternated between a much younger and a much older teen, but now he's mostly acting like a well behaved fourteen year old except when he's clearly acting the part of a Lord. All year I've watched you train him to fulfill that role, but this past week he has really impressed me and put all that training to good use."

"I agree. I couldn't be more proud. Did you see his grades?"

"No, we got them?"

"Yes, they're in my trunk. I'm going to surprise him with them at breakfast. We got them this morning but we didn't have time so I didn't open it until earlier while you were in the shower."

"Are you going to tell me?"

"All O's."

Remus looks at Sirius in shock. "Oh he's going to be so happy! We should celebrate tomorrow."

"Agreed. Now you know I love pillow talk but I really need some sleep. All this sightseeing is quite exhausting." Sirius rolls onto his side, away from Remus and turns off the bedside light. He feels Remus wrap his arms around him and relishes in the comfort. He's not sure he'll ever get tired of this. His last thought before he falls asleep is that he hopes Harry will one day have someone to hold onto at night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry, I have something for you," Sirius says at breakfast the next morning, handing Harry the piece of parchment. Harry opens it before looking at it in shock.

"Are you serious? This is real?"

"Very real. It came just before we left yesterday, and I completely forgot about it."

Severus can't contain his curiosity anymore and grabs the parchment, having recognized the seal on the outside. "This is excellent Harry! This calls for a celebration and maybe a reward."

"We were thinking the same thing. We're just not sure what."

"I'll take care of the celebration," Severus says. "I know this really good restaurant that I think will be perfect. I think we should let Harry pick his reward. This shows the incredibly hard work you've put into this, especially with extra lessons and the Tournament going on."

"I agree. So Harry, what do you want as reward?"

"Hmm. How about a 'get out of punishment free' card? I can use it once to get out of trouble."

The others look at each other. "I'll agree as long as it's not allowed to be used to get out of punishment for putting yourself in danger," Severus says contemplatively.

"I agree on that. You get to decide when you use it, and it's always an option until you do, but it's not an option when you're in trouble for putting yourself or your health in danger," Remus says.

Sirius agrees as well, so Severus quickly conjures a piece of parchment under the table. "Here you go, your 'get out of punishment free' card. Use it wisely."

"Hold on. I'll accept your restriction if you agree to the condition that you tell me my punishment before I decide whether to use it or not."

"Agreed," Severus says. He knows Harry will hold onto this until he gets grounded from Quidditch, there is no doubt in his mind.

Harry grins and takes the parchment, carefully putting it in his wallet. "So Anne Frank house first?"

"Yes, let's head on over there, it opens in about half an hour."

They spend several hours at the museum, and they are all quiet when they leave. When they sit down for lunch, none of them talk much. Nothing needs to be said either, the museum spoke for itself. Harry has bought the diary in the gift shop, and he vows to read it first chance he gets once they are back home, even though it likely won't be easy. The fact that they visited this museum right before the start of another war is not lost on them.

"What are we doing this afternoon?"

"I was thinking we could visit the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum," Remus says.

The others agree, and soon they take a tram there. They are across the street from one another, and the Concert building is on the other side of the large square. They enjoy both museums, and Harry learns a lot about art. Art isn't a subject that's taught at Hogwarts, and many wizards and witches never develop a good understanding of it. Harry is glad his guardians take an interest in helping him understand. Most art in the wizarding world is in the form of portraits and sculptures. Families will have large family portraits in their homes, not landscapes by famous painters.

When Severus leads them to the restaurant for dinner they have to all admit he's made a good choice. It is not a large restaurant, but it's not tiny either. "This restaurant is owned by a famous British chef named Jamie. He actually has a show on television where he has these students go through lessons at a culinary school and then working in his restaurant that he opened for that purpose. The students are unemployed young adults who could really use another chance in life. I've never actually seen the show, but I've been told the food is excellent and so is the service. It is almost impossible to get a table, and when I called they said they had a two month waiting list, but I called in a favor."

"What kind of favor?" Harry asks once they're at his table.

"Well the person who told me the food was amazing was Lord Peterson. As you know Lord Peterson also has some Muggle clients, and he helped with the contracts for these restaurants. Dora has the two way mirror, and I had her see if Lord Peterson could help. He apparently called Jamie and asked, upon which Jamie told him he was in Amsterdam and he'd love to see him again so why didn't he join us for dinner? He should be here soon, I hope you don't mind."

He doesn't need to say anything else, seeing the happiness on Harry's face. "Why would I mind?" 

"That's what I like to hear! And for tonight I'm Henry. Congratulations Harry, those marks are excellent. Ahh, Jamie, my friend! It has been a long time since I've seen you! Eric complains that you need to come teach his mother some more dishes, because he's had the others ones entirely too often because she knows they're good."

"Well then I'll have to see what I can do. He is set to start at boarding school this fall, isn't he? I'll have to make sure to make time soon then so he can enjoy the food before he leaves."

"He'll be joining Harry here at school. Jamie, this is Lord Prince, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Lord Harry Potter-Black. Everyone, this is Jamie. We grew up in the same neighborhood. He knows."

They all know what Henry is talking about. "A second cousin. So Harry, aren't you a little young to be a Lord?"

"Many would say so. I'm turning fifteen at the end of the month."

"Harry is actually a four time Lord, he just doesn't want the long name."

"I can't blame you. My cousin actually mentioned a Harry Potter before, that wouldn't be you would it?"

"It is," Harry says, looking sceptical. He's not sure what to think of this man.

"That's a coincidence. So I heard a congratulations, what are we celebrating?"

"Harry here got top marks in every single one of his classes this year, while taking extra classes, an independent study class and taking lessons in etiquette, protocol and law."

"Very impressive. Look, I have to get back to the kitchen. I will check back with you later. Henry, have your wife schedule something."

"Stop glaring Harry. He's an excellent chef and really nice once you get to know him. And he's stopped my wife from burning down the house since she had no clue how to cook before we had elves," Henry says.

"If you say so. I'll judge his cooking by the food we get tonight. He might not be the one at the stove but he's still supervising and they're his recipes."

The topic quickly turns to other things, but Harry can't help but shoot glances at Jamie who he notices is looking at him a lot. He knows Severus went through a lot of trouble to arrange a nice dinner, and he does his best to act like nothing is wrong. He should have known nothing gets past Severus, and after they finish their first course Severus takes Harry outside. "Let's get some fresh air for a minute Harry."

Once outside he lifts Harry's chin up to look him in the eye. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know. I get a weird feeling when around Jamie and he keeps looking at me."

"As in something isn't right, or as in you just aren't sure if you like him?" 

"As in something isn't right. I'm sorry, I'm sure he's fine and I'm ruining this. You tried so hard to make this special and I'm messing this up."

"Hey, what makes something special is having everyone there. This is for you, if something is wrong you need to speak up, alright? I'll never be upset when you voice your feelings especially when you feel like something isn't right. Instinct is important."

"But I don't know him, for all I know that's just who he is. And for all I know he's heard a lot of stories about me from his cousin and that's why he's staring at me."

"I want you to be extra careful, and cast extra detection charms. We can't be too careful."

"Alright, let's go back in. And I'm sorry."

"No more apologizing. There's nothing to apologize for. If the feeling gets worse, let me know."

They sit back at the table, Severus now more alert to what's going on around them. Soon their main course is served and Severus and Harry simultaneously cast multiple detection charms, wandlessly so the other patrons in the restaurant don't notice. When Harry's bread glows red immediate containment charms are cast, and Severus takes off to apprehend Jamie. He comes back with Jamie fairly quickly. "Jamie, is there anyone in this restaurant with access to food who is not supposed to be here?"

"No."

"Sirius, conjure a bag to put that roll in. Be careful. Alright, now I'm turning this into a portkey, everyone grab hold."

Everyone grabs the napkins he is holding and before they realize where they are going they are in a Ministry holding cell. Severus locks Jamie in one and Henry in another. "Sorry Henry, but you two were the new additions so you'll need tested. Sirius, send a Patronus to Amelia Bones."

Harry is shaking and sinks against the wall opposite the holding cells. Sirius sits down with him and puts his arm around him, noticing that Harry is barely holding it together. Sirius wants to do nothing more than hex the person responsible for ruining their vacation. It doesn't take long for Amelia to show up and Severus explains what happens. Immediately she summons Kingsley since he has been helping out in the Auror department and still has the most seniority and a Senior Healer from St. Mungo's. Together they test both Henry and Jamie. Henry is declared innocent and he is who he says he is, even under veritasserum. Jamie however, suddenly starts morphing into someone completely different. "Kingsley, dispatch Aurors to his house. Find out where the real Jamie is. When you get back we'll do a preliminary interrogation on this one."

The interrogation doesn't take long and soon they find out that this is a disgruntled Death Eater who was trying to do is to get back in favor with the Dark Lord, who is not happy to have lost so many followers. Plans of Harry's vacation had leaked out and he had been following them with polyjuice potion, waiting for his chance. It turns out the real Jamie is in a backroom at the restaurant in Amsterdam, unconscious, so Aurors in Amsterdam are contacted to retrieve him.

"Lord Potter-Black, why don't you come with me up to the Auror offices and we'll get your statement. We'll also take the bread as evidence," Amelia says kindly, seeing how upset the boy is.

Sirius helps Harry stand up and soon they are upstairs in a conference room. They have all given their statement and turned over the poisoned bread. "Harry, do you want to go back to the hotel or go home?" Severus asks softly.

"You've all spent a lot of money and energy on this vacation. I don't want to ruin it."

"You didn't, that idiot down there did. I want you to be honest."

"Home," Harry whispers softly. He doesn't understand how their plans could have leaked out when they had used fake names and even Harry didn't know where they were going. He overheard Remus and Sirius talking and saying that they'd changed their plans so many times that even they were getting confused.

"Lady Bones, are we done here?"

"Yes Lord Prince, we are. If we need anything further we will make sure to contact you."

"Thank you. Let's go home."

The four of them say goodbye to Henry, who is waiting for Jamie to be brought in to make sure his friend is alright, and apparate home. Harry walks up to his room, and without even undressing crawls into bed.

"Sirius, Remus, can you two portkey to Amsterdam and pick up our trunks?" Severus asks. "I'm going to give Harry some dreamless sleep. He is really shaken by this, he thought himself safe in a different country and he had had a bad feeling all through dinner which is why we went outside."

"We'll leave now. We should be back within the hour."

Severus walks up the stairs after summoning the sleeping potion. He sits on the side of Harry's bed and strokes his hair. "We caught the bastard Harry. It's alright now, you're safe here. Why don't you take this and get a good night's sleep."

Harry takes the potion without protest, which is an indication how upset he is, and soon he is asleep. Severus watches him sleep for a few minutes before walking down to the basement. On the other side of the hall from his potions lab is a training room, which is magic resistant to not let anything that happens inside affect the rest of the house. It is built that way to help train children to control their accidental magic. As soon as he has sealed the room he drops his Occlumency shields, releasing a great bout of anger through his magic. He instantly feels better. Occlumency helps control your emotions, but when he's as angry as this he needs to release it all before it overwhelms him.

Severus unseals the room and heads upstairs, surprised to see Sirius and Remus return. "The portkey was just departing as we got there so we didn't have to wait at all. We got all our luggage and checked out. What were you doing downstairs?"

"Needed to release anger. Harry is asleep, I'm going to take a potion myself and sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

"Why are you all back?" A sleepy Dora says, walking down the stairs.

"Attempted poisoning of Harry. He's fine, we're all fine, just shaken up and our vacation cut short for now. We're going to bed, we'll explain the whole story tomorrow."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Lord Potter-Black, may I come through?"

Harry looks at the fireplace and sees Lady Bones. "Certainly. Use password Phoenix Fire." It's been three days since they've been home and he's been wondering what's going on.

Harry quickly sets the password and soon she is standing in the living room. "Call me Harry while in my home. Should we go to my office or can this be done out here?"

"Would you mind calling your guardians? I know they aren't required since you are emancipated but I'm assuming you would tell them anyway and this way you won't have to repeat it."

Amelia watches in slight awe as Harry sends off his Patroni with messages. "Impressive Harry."

"Thank you."

"Alright, we have charged Mr. Duney with attempted murder of a Confirmed Lord. As you are a four time Lord, that is four charges. He is also charged with attempted murder of a Noble Heir since you are Heir Prince. Unfortunately, after further questioning, it was discovered he had orders to do this. The orders came from none other than Lucius Malfoy."

She has barely finished speaking when suddenly Harry stands up and walks outside. The others follow in morbid curiosity but also to make sure he's alright considering he looks furious.

Amelia has never seen such a display of anger before. Harry is setting fire to a tree, before freezing it and then setting fire to it again. When he's done it a couple times the tree merely crumbles and Harry uses a simple Aguamenti spell to put out the ashes and prevent them from catching fire. All wandless and wordless.

"Sorry about that. Needed to release anger and last time I used the magical practice room for that the house shook slightly, which shouldn't be possible in that room."

Harry walks back inside as if nothing strange has happened, while Amelia can't seem to find anything to say. To shake the Manor in a magical practice room, which every Manor has, means he has to have tremendous power. And to do what he just did.

"Would you like to explain how Lucius can do this?"

"We figured that out too, and it's probably good that you got your anger out of your system. It appears that Lucius isn't Lucius. We allowed family members to visit, and Lucius is actually Draco Malfoy under Polyjuice. Draco Malfoy is the real Lucius. They have been swapped and Draco is in St. Mungo's for a few days to recover. We immediately checked all the other Death Eaters and they are who they say they are."

"And how did nobody notice Polyjuice in prison?"

"I can't answer that quite yet. Draco has only visited once, and that was a couple days ago so it wasn't very long."

"I see. Anything else?"

"Lucius has been Obliviated of all his memories from outside Azkaban to protect Andromeda and Ted. He already has a life sentence, and with the veritasserum confessions we already have it's enough to get him Kissed. It will happen tomorrow."

"Thank you for informing us."

"You're welcome Harry. Now I must get back, let me know if you need anything."

"Alright Harry, you said you didn't want to leave until this was solved. You ready to get back to vacation?" 

"Yes, very. And all our hotels and everything has been changed, right?"

"Yes, our itineraries are completely different now. And you are not leaving our sight and we are casting diagnostics on everything."

"I wouldn't expect anything less," Harry says with a half smile.

Severus smiles back, hoping a week and a half in Italy will bring back the cheerful Harry they know. The past three days Harry's been hiding behind books, and they hope that now that people have been sentenced and everything is solved, everything will be as normal as it can be again.

AN: Lot's happened in this chapter. You didn't really think I'd let them go on vacation without anything happening, now did you? Voldemort is back, and he's angry for having lost his top Death Eaters. We now have an angry Voldemort and an angry Dumbledore. I'm hoping to fit the rest of the summer in the next chapter :)


	45. Chapter 45

AN:

I have a full notebook with notes and outlines for this story (as I do with every story I write), but if I missed anything or have a continuity problem, feel free to let me know!

Chapter 45

"I love Rome!" Harry exclaims, walking through the city with Severus, Sirius and Remus. They've been in Rome for three days and seen all the major tourist spots. Harry's favorite though was Pompei, the Roman city wiped out by volcanic ash. They are leaving for Florence and Venice in the morning and are now simply walking down the streets after dinner.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it Harry," Sirius says with a smile. They have all been on guard but also very relaxed at the same time. A vacation was needed by all of them, especially after the revelations about Draco and Lucius.

"I need to call a meeting with Draco when we get back. Andromeda or Ted will have to be there as guardian. Remind me to send a note to Dora to schedule that tonight. I want to know what happened and how much he was truly aware of it."

"Agreed but let's not worry about that now. It's just a good thing House Malfoy doesn't allow underage Lords, it would be a disaster if he was emancipated without any guidance right now. It's one of only three Houses that have that in place, so we got lucky. He needs guidance, and hopefully that guidance will steer him away from the path his parents have taken."

"I know Severus, and I'm not going to condemn him. I could since I'm his Lord at the moment and what he did was against House Black, but he doesn't need that right now."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hi Dora, you miss us?"

"It's crazy quiet around here without all of you. How was Italy?"

"Amazing. It's a beautiful country. I prefer Venice. Just the way it's all on the water is beautiful. We went up into a tower and could see the city from above and it's stunning. I'll show you the pictures later. Florence and Rome were cool too. Do I have anything the rest of the day?"

"No, I wasn't sure what time you'd get back. You have Draco tomorrow morning and the Peterson's tomorrow afternoon. Since we only have a few days until your birthday, you have nothing after tomorrow until then. I assumed you'd want to do some studying and extra lessons. Everyone invited RSVP'd to your birthday. Hermione asked why you signed your own birthday card, so I explained that you indicated you didn't want gifts which is normal for a Lord, and because of that a Lord signs their own invitations unless it's a surprise party. Otherwise it'd be like asking for your own gifts. She was then confused on whether to bring something or not, and I indicated that while the invitation says no gifts, it is customary to bring something anyway. All Lords, whether they are attending or not, will send a gift regardless of whether or not there is a party, and friends do that anyway as well. You will not be opening the gifts in front of all the guests either, you do that in private afterwards with just family or close friends. I will get thank you cards made up so we can send those the day after. That reminds me, I compiled a listing of birthdays for all Confirmed Lords, as you need to send them gifts. I will get gifts and have them ready for you to sign the card once they are ready to be mailed."

"Thank you Dora. I'm going to go flying. I want to practice casting while flying."

"Is he in a better mood?" Dora asks the others.

"He is. The vacation was good for him. I hope his talk with Draco tomorrow won't be too upsetting," Remus says, walking through to his room to unpack. "Dobby! Could you take Harry's bags and unpack for him please?"

"Yes Master Remus sir."

The next morning it is obvious that Harry is distracted at breakfast. "Harry, do you want one of us with you during your talk with Draco?"

"No, I need to do this myself. Thank you though. I'm going to my office."

Harry is responding to some correspondence that has piled up while he was on vacation when Dobby comes in, escorting Draco. Harry casts wandless and wordless privacy charms over all his paperwork and stands up to greet Draco. He doesn't miss the wide eyed look at him casting wandlessly.

"Draco. Have a seat."

As soon as Draco has sat down a tea tray pops onto a side table. "Tea?"

"Yes please."

Harry pours them both tea before sitting down again. "I'm sure you know why I asked you to come."

"I do. Look, I don't mean any disrespect and I know you are Lord Black and all, but there's no need for us to pretend to like each other so please just ask what you want to ask."

"Draco, I know you are in a difficult position. Your father lost the Lordship when he went to Azkaban, yet his ancestors made it so underage Lords aren't allowed so you can't be Lord until you turn seventeen, while I was able to become a Lord and emancipated. You live with people you don't particularly like and are under the protection of a Lord you hate. However, that doesn't change the fact that you are under my protection and you got hurt. That makes it my problem and that's why you are here. It is my job to ensure you are safe and healthy. Since you want to get to the point, let's get to the point. What happened? How did you end up at Azkaban and how did Lucius get polyjuice? Did you know ahead of time and did you agree to it?"

Draco sighs. "No, I did not know ahead of time. I was allowed to visit mother and father after they were sentenced there. Ted took me, but he remained down the hall and allowed privacy. I don't know how he got the polyjuice. He already had it when I got there. I have a feeling one of his acquaintances smuggled it in but I doubt you'll ever truly find out. When I got there, he told me what he wanted me to do. He said once he was out he would make sure I would get out within a few days, a week at most depending on how fast he could get to the Dark Lord. I wanted my father back, so I played along. The high security cells don't have human guards right by the cells, just at the entrances to the cell block. There are just dementors. Lucius took the polyjuice and changed into me. He left polyjuice behind with some of his hair in it, just in case a guard came towards the cell and I would have to take it. Dementors can sense a presence but don't distinguish between people. He snuck out pretending to be me. He never came back, until suddenly guards came and took me away. That's when I found out what he had tried to do to you and how they had captured him. I was in there much longer than intended and I never want to go back. The only reason I'm not there now is because it's believed that I didn't know. You'll probably sent me there first chance you get."

"No, I won't. I don't want you to follow in your father's footsteps. I will make sure Azkaban is more secure, but I will not divulge anything about you. Thank you for telling me and being honest about it. How are you doing with Andromeda and Ted?"

"They are strict but nice. It's hard but I suppose I'm doing alright. I'm not allowed to fly or leave the house without supervision, but inside I can do what I want. I've been doing a lot of reading. They allow me to write my friends but they read all my mail coming in and going out. It's annoying but I understand why it's necessary for their safety."

"Draco, it's for your safety as much as theirs."

"Why do you all care if I'm safe?"

"Because we are family and it's what family does. I have an assignment for you. Between now and when I see you on my birthday, I want you to write down things that can be done to make your life better. I want you to give me that list and I'll see what I can do. I want you to be honest, and don't leave anything off. It doesn't matter if you think I won't do it, I want to know about it. Can you do that?"

"Yes sir."

"Then unless you have anything else you want to share, this meeting is done."

"There's nothing else. Thank you."

Harry calls for Dobby and Dobby apparates Draco back home while Harry walks to the kitchen. It is close to lunch time and he's hungry. The others are already there, as are the Petersons. "Hi everyone. You waiting for me?"

"Yes we are. How did it go?"

"Pretty good I think. We'll see if it actually got through to him. So what's for lunch."

Before he can sit down he is pulled into a big hug by Sara. "How dare you scare me like that!" she scolds while shaking him and then pulling him into another hug. "I was terrified! Don't you ever do that to me again young man! Now sit down and eat, you are still far too skinny."

Harry grins at Henry before sitting down in his seat. It doesn't take long for food to appear on the table and they all start eating. "Eric, I think I should tell you some stories about Hogwarts this afternoon. After I change out of these formal robes."

"I have to say you look amazing in those Harry," Sara says with a smile. "I imagine you being a very imposing Lord if you want to be."

"I think the key is if I want to be. Draco called me 'sir' and it just felt weird. Eric, are you ready?"

"Yes!"

"Harry James you better not help my son get into trouble. I know where you live and have no problem hunting you down to let you know of my displeasure should I find out you did," Henry says sternly.

"Don't worry. I won't tell him anything he won't be told by the other Gryffindors before the first week is up."

Sirius and Remus burst out laughing when Harry quickly leaves the room with Eric, which causes everyone else to look at them. "Oh, he is so going to tell him how to get in trouble without getting caught. All you have to do is find the right people within Gryffindor, which isn't hard, and you'll find all of it out within the first week. I believe right now those people are the Weasley Twins. Sorry Henry, but you are about to find out what having a child at Hogwarts is like."

"Wonderful. I suppose it's a good thing he'll be experiencing Hogwarts. He'll likely become more independent and hopefully less reckless."

"If nothing else take comfort in the fact that they don't know anything we don't know."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"This map is amazing! You sure you can't copy it?"

"I'm sure. I don't know how it was made, and I don't want to ask. Do you see these passages? They are good to use if you have to get back to Gryffindor Tower without getting caught. They are magical passages which means Mr. Filch and his stupid cat can't get in them. You just have to be careful for professors or prefects who are doing rounds. I've never seen any of them in there though. Figure out the patrolling schedule quickly. Avoid nights when Severus is patrolling, and try to avoid Slytherin prefects. Gryffindor prefects will be least likely to punish you since you'll be a Gryffindor. The only exception would be Hermione if she makes Prefect this year. Severus catches practically every student who is stupid enough to sneak out when he is patrolling. I don't know how he does it, but we've accepted it. Feel free to ask if you need to know who is patrolling, I can always look on the map."

"This is awesome. How much trouble are you in if you are caught out of bed?"

"Depends on who catches you. It ranges from a few points to a detention. If you are caught by the same professor multiple times you might get in more trouble than that. You have to learn to walk in the shadows and be quiet, it's how you avoid detection. The hallways echo, so noise is heard several hallways away."

"Dad would kill me if I was caught out after curfew."

"Usually you don't get a letter home unless you get caught out a lot. If you feel you are close to that, back off for a while and let things calm down."

"Harry, Eric?"

"Yes dad?" Eric replies.

"It's time to go home. I'm sure after two hours you have plenty of ways to stay out of trouble. We'll see you in a few days Harry."

"Is it that late already? I feel like you just got here! Yes, I will see you all in a few days. I'll walk you out."

Harry sits down for tea with his guardians after the Petersons leave. "I'm ready for a nap."

Sirius laughs. "I'm sure running a family is hard work. Dora needs your yes or no on a few formal events you've been invited to. After that I'm sure you can take a nap."

"They are on your desk Harry. I need to send out replies."

"I'll look at them after tea."

Harry quickly drinks his tea before disappearing into his office. Dora has provided a self-updating schedule for him so he can see where everything fits in. He ends up accepting all the events, only turning down one because of a conflict in his schedule. He puts them in the box for Dora and walks back to the living room. "I put them in the box Dora. I'm going to sleep."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Padfoot! There is no need to jump on me!" Harry yells as a large black dog jumps on him. It's the morning of his birthday and he just wants to sleep a little bit longer. In his opinion summer is for sleeping in unless he had somewhere to be.

"Come on pup, breakfast is ready!"

"Alright alright, I'm moving. I'll be down in a minute."

When Harry gets down to breakfast a familiar Hogwarts envelope is waiting for him, as are his guardians. He looks over to the side and sees a mountain of presents. "What's all that?"

"Presents. Any Lords who won't be here today will have sent something, and the ones who will be here will likely have sent theirs as well so they don't have to carry it around. I'm sure there's some from adoring fans too," Severus smirks.

"Wonderful. It'll take hours to unwrap everything. Why is my Hogwarts letter so big?"

"Open it and find out pup."

Harry looks at his guardians and can tell that they know why it's so big, so he quickly opens it. Besides the customary letter and supply list, a badge falls out. Picking it up he sees it's a Prefect badge. "I'm a Prefect? How does that work, I'm not even in a House."

"Yes you are. They put you in place of a male Ravenclaw Prefect. You were the best candidate even amongst the Ravenclaws and Filius is your Head of House so it made sense. Congratulations cub," Remus smiles.

"You'll do great. You've already shown to be a leader and to be equally fair to all students regardless of House affiliation. We need more prefects like that," Severus says.

"Here is our gift Harry. We had no clue what to get you, but we hope you'll enjoy this."

Harry opens the envelope and several tickets fall out. Looking at it he realizes they are entrance tickets to a Wizarding amusement park. There's enough tickets for all his friends. "Wicked! I've heard about this place, it looks awesome!"

"Glad you like it. Unfortunately, they are doing some renovations now and we couldn't find a date before you go back to school that you could go. We figured it might be something to do over winter break. It's mostly inside and it's in Spain, so weather won't be an issue."

"I love it. What time does everyone get here?"

"Two o'clock. Viktor is expected to arrive any minute."

"Good. He's staying until tomorrow afternoon, right?"

"Yes, he has to leave tomorrow afternoon to get back in time for a match. You'll see him in Bulgaria in two weeks though."

"I know, just checking. Who are the other prefects?"

"Slytherin it's Blaise and Pansy, Hufflepuff is Justin and Susan, Hermione and Neville for Gryffindor. They made Cedric a prefect since you can't be Head Boy two years in a row. I don't remember Ravenclaw's girl prefect," Sirius says.

"I'll find out on the train ride probably. I'm done with breakfast, do you guys object if I transform into Lightning for a bit? I'm getting much better at flying and being able to pick up speed quickly and slow down quickly."

"I'll join you as Shadow," Severus says. "I need to stretch my wings for a bit too. Does Viktor know you are an Animagus?"

"No, but I don't care if he finds out. Come on, let's go fly."

"Want to watch?" Sirius asks Remus.

"Yes. I love watching them interact in their Animagus forms. Dobby, if Viktor shows up we are in the backyard."

"Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin. It's good to see you. Dobby said you were all out here?"

"Hi Viktor and it's Sirius and Remus. Harry and Severus are up there," Sirius says, pointing at the two birds.

Viktor's mouth drops open as he stares at them flying. It is clear when Harry sees Viktor because he lands, transforms and then gives him a big hug. "So glad you're here!"

"Harry James! You did not tell me you were an Animagus!" Viktor finally exclaims.

"Sorry, we didn't really tell anyone. What do you think?"

"I think it's brilliant. I won't tell anyone, don't worry."

"Good, I'd hate to have to obliviate you. Come on, let's go inside and I'll show you around."

Harry shows Viktor around the Manor, ending in his own room and the lounge where he falls down on the couch. "I love this place."

"It's beautiful. This room is very nice, you can hang out here and be away from the adults," Viktor says, sitting down next to Harry and pulling him into his side. He lifts Harry's face up and gently kisses him, only to be interrupted by a cough.

"Yes Sirius?"

"I came to tell you lunch will be at noon. Do we need to supervise or will you two behave?"

"Sirius!" Harry yells, utterly mortified.

"Don't start Harry, it's a valid question."

"We'll behave," Viktor says.

"I'm glad to hear it." Sirius walks out of the room, purposely leaving the door open.

"He realizes I can put up privacy spells whether the door is open or closed, right?"

"Yes but he is trusting us to be alone up here. I'm alright without privacy charms Harry."

"If I want to make out with my boyfriend, I should be able to make out with my boyfriend," Harry says petulantly."

Viktor grins and returns to kissing Harry.

Downstairs Sirius is glaring at the stairs. "I don't like them up there alone."

"Sirius, calm down. He is fifteen, he can be alone with someone. Harry is responsible enough not to do anything he doesn't want to do. Why don't you go see if Dora needs help with decorating?"

Sirius leaves the room and Remus looks at Severus, who is pretending not to listen in. "I don't like it either," Severus says without looking up. "He's fifteen, it would not be out of line to forbid them to be alone together in his bedroom."

"They aren't in his bedroom, they are in his lounge."

This causes Severus to look up and glare at Remus. Remus squirms slightly under the glare. "Alright fine, I understand your point. If you are both so against it, why don't you make them come downstairs?"

"Because it's his birthday. Any other day and they would already be firmly planted on that couch over here as opposed to upstairs. They'll learn tomorrow."

"We need to trust Harry to make the right choices."

"He is fifteen. And I trust Harry, just not that boy he's with. I'm sure you remember what fifteen year old boy hormones are like."

"That boy?"

"Hmm."

"Severus, if I didn't know better I'd say you are acting like a protective father right now."

"If you say so. Now I'd like to read in peace before this place is taken over by teenagers."

Remus laughs and turns back to his book. Just before lunch Harry and Viktor come down the stairs to join them.

"Hey padfoot, you going to join us in the Quidditch game later?"

"Absolutely! I'm going to be on your team along with Severus. We've been practicing our Chaser skills while you were practicing new spells the past few days."

"Wicked. I already told Fred and George they were on my team, and you guys get Charlie as third Chaser. Bill will be our Keeper. Viktor, you might want to claim your teammates early on before all the good ones are taken. And you better not let me win just because it's my birthday. If I think you did I will hex you."

"Wouldn't dream of it. Is there somewhere I can change? We have about an hour until it starts but I think it's best to be ready early."

"Any of the guest rooms on the second floor. You can go ahead and pick one since you're staying the night anyway."

Everyone heads upstairs to get changed. Harry isn't looking forward to wearing formal robes, but he knows it's necessary as it's a more formal party this year. When he comes downstairs Viktor looks at him appreciatively.

"Let's head outside. People will portkey into the side yard so we'll need to be there to welcome them. The first portkey should arrive in fifteen minutes," Dora says. "I also want to take a picture of Harry and one of Harry with the three of you. You all look very handsome and it should be photographed."

None of them get out of the pictures, and she also takes one of Viktor and Harry together. Last, Viktor takes one of Harry, Dora, Sirius, Remus and Severus and even one with Dobby in it as well. Dobby charms one of the camera's to continuously take pictures throughout the party as soon as the first guests arrive.

By the time Harry has greeted everyone he is exhausted. "I think the smile is stuck on my face," he whispers to Severus.

"It'll get worse before the day is over. Just be polite to everyone but focus on your friends. It's what's expected."

Harry does just that and soon he is talking happily with Hermione, Neville, Susan and Cedric. "Excuse me. Cedric, do you fly Chaser or just Seeker?"

"I can fly Chaser."

"Excellent. You're on my team later on," Viktor says before taking off again. They all look at Harry in surprise, who is just grinning.

"I already claimed my team. I told him to gather a team early on before the good players are taken. Of course the best players are on my team."

"Who is on your team?"

"Sirius, Severus and Charlie as Chasers, Fred and George Beaters and Bill Keeper."

"That is a good team, but I'm not sure about Severus. You sure he can fly?"

"Oh yes, and they've been practicing."

Harry had discussed it with his guardians, and they decided he should show a little bit of his magical power. It would work in his benefit as long as he didn't show too much. So when the teams head to the pitch to play, and the rest head to the stands to watch, Harry wandlessly and wordlessly changes his clothes into Quidditch gear before changing his entire team's outfits to the same color. "Now we can recognize each other easily."

He hears the gasp from the audience but ignores it. Remus is the referee and soon they are in the air waiting to start. Harry notices Draco on the other team and smiles, happy that Viktor included him. Before long Viktor and Harry are both chasing the snitch, turning it into almost a dance as opposed to a chase. The snitch is set to Expert and they have to pull out all stops to keep up with it. When Viktor almost gets sideswept by a well aimed bludger from Fred, Harry catches the snitch, grinning widely.

The stands cheer and Harry is surrounded by his team. They all land and lots of shoulder clapping later Harry changes his gear back into his formal robes before joining the rest of the party. Many are now in the garden with drinks in their hands, and Harry knows it's time to talk to all the other guest. Everyone is too polite to ask about his show of magic, but he can tell they want to. Everyone he has an Alliance with is there, along with Lord MacMillan. He makes sure to talk to him for a while, hoping that in the future they could form an Alliance of Friendship as well.

When he gets to Kingsley he grins widely. "Hi Kingsley. Glad to see you here. You having fun yet?"

"Absolutely. I'm going to have even more fun tomorrow when we start working out again."

"You're joking."

"You didn't see it on the schedule?"

"No. We can't wait?"

"Harry, how much have you actually done?"

"Not as much as normal but I've still been doing what I can!"

"Don't worry, you'll get back into it quickly. This is one heck of a party, Sirius really outdid himself."

"He had help from Dora this time. It's noticeable. I need to continue making sure I talk to everyone, but stick around at the end and we'll catch up!"

Harry ends up talking to everyone who came, and just before dinner most people start to leave. Dobby puts out platters of food, and since it's just his friends and family left Harry changes his clothes into casual robes. "Much better. Time to eat everyone!"

All the teenagers find seats at one long table while the adults sit at the other. When Harry sees Draco hesitate he motions for him to sit at their table. He sees the flicker of relief in Draco's eyes but decides not to comment on it. Harry is loving the banter between all of them. This is what family and friends is all about in his opinion. Nobody is pretending to be anything they're not and they're all relaxed.

When dinner is over Arthur approaches Harry. "Harry, I want you to know that I'm getting everyone tested for compulsions in a few weeks. I made an appointment with the goblins. I really hope you are wrong but I want to be certain."

"I'm glad Arthur. It's best to know and deal with it than not know. Please let me know what you find and I'll help anyway I can."

"Absolutely. And please know that I do not condone what my wife, son and daughter did to you."

"Arthur, I don't blame you so don't worry. And this is a party, let's forget about that for today shall we?"

Arthur smiles before pulling Harry into a hug. "You are an amazing young man. Now I need to go make sure the twins aren't planning anything crazy."

"Leave them be please. I know what they are planning and it's alright."

"Do your guardians know?"

"No, and I'm going to pretend I didn't know. If need be, pretend to punish them but don't actually punish them please."

"Very well. Consider it part of your birthday gift."

"Draco, walk over here with me will you?" Harry asks when he sees Draco nearby. "Do you have the list?"

Draco nods and hands him a piece of parchment. "I'm not going to look at it now, but I promise if there is anything on here I can make happen, I will. We will discuss this at some point and if there's anything I can't do I will tell you why. Sound fair?"

"Yes sir. Thank you."

"Let's go get cake. It's the best part of the day."

Draco almost laughs, which makes Harry smile. He wants Draco to feel comfortable around them and maybe one day he'll drop the mask he always wears. For now a crack in the mask is as good as he'll get.

Harry has had three pieces of cake when suddenly there's a loud explosion and they all look around to suddenly see fireworks up in the sky. Harry grins while most of the adults look around to see what caused it. Severus walks over to Harry and puts an arm around his shoulder. "I know you know who did this."

"My lips are sealed. These are awesome!"

"You do realize that since you knew about this I'm within my right to discipline you, right? As nice as this is, it's irresponsible."

"Shhh. Who said I knew?"

"I can tell from the look in your eyes. You weren't surprised."

Harry doesn't respond and simply smiles at the fireworks. The twins really went all out, and when the last one spells 'Happy Birthday Harry' his smile grows wider. He quickly finds the twins, giving them both hugs. "Thank you guys."

"Harry, we had nothing to do with that."

"Of course. By the way, I told your dad not to punish you even if he has to pretend that he will while here. He agreed. Thought you should know."

"Wicked!" Fred and George both say at the same time.

They see Severus and Arthur approach them with stern looks on their faces. "Fred, George, I will deal with you when we get home. Setting off fireworks unsupervised is dangerous and irresponsible."

"Yes sir!" Fred, George and Arthur walk away, leaving Harry with Severus.

"Oh come on, it was a great ending! Besides, it's my birthday!"

"Next time, warn one of us so we can supervise. We would have been fine with it. Turn around."

"Ahh Severus, please?"

"Turn. Around."

Harry turns around and feels a swat on his backside before being turned back. Harry barely even felt it as it felt more like a light pat and is slightly confused. "That's so you know I'm not happy about it, but I won't punish you because it's your birthday. I agree the fireworks were nice."

Harry grins at his guardian before giving him a hug. "Thank you."

"And I'm warning you now, if I find out that Viktor snuck into your room after bedtime tonight you will get a real swat."

"Understood. We weren't planning on that anyway. Can I ask you something and you not freak out?"

"Anything."

"You know how I call Sirius dad sometimes? Ever since the blood adoption I've wanted to call you that too but it would get really confusing if I did that."

"The blood adoption can cause you to feel closer connected to me. You may call me what you want and whatever you feel comfortable with."

"Do you think Remus would be upset if he was the only one I didn't call dad?"

"No, I don't. He can't blood adopt you, we don't know how that would work with his lycanthropy, but I think he enjoys being an uncle. Your love for him doesn't change just because you don't call him dad and he knows that."

"But now I still don't know what to call you. Father sounds too formal. What about papa?"

"That works. Now I do think we need to get back to the party before people think I've cut you up for potions."

Harry laughs before they both walk back to the rest of the party. When Harry joins his friends they look at him in question. "I'm fine. We talked about something else, I'm not in trouble."

"We have to get going Harry. It was a great party," Hermione says. "Let us know when you go school shopping and we'll go the same day."

Harry starts saying bye to his friends and soon it is just his guardians, Kingsley and Viktor left. They are outside around a fire, simply relaxing. Harry and Viktor are on a bench together and Sirius and Remus on another. Severus looks at Kingsley. "We need to find us someone."

Kingsley just laughs. "Look at Harry and Viktor. It's kind of cute."

Severus looks over and sees Viktor's hand on Harry's thigh, a little too high up to Severus' liking. "Move that hand young man."

Viktor and Harry startle and Viktor moves his hand while Harry flushes bright red. "Papa he wasn't doing anything!"

"His hand was too close to where it shouldn't go. Especially not in front of me. Live with it."

"Papa?" Sirius asks.

"Yes, papa. Can't very well call both of you dad now can I. And I think you are overreacting. I'm fifteen, not ten."

"Harry James, I do not want you going further than a cuddle and a kiss until you are of age. And you definitely don't go further in front of us!" Severus says sternly. "If you don't agree with that you can go to bed."

"Severus," Kingsley says. "Don't you think you're overreacting a little?"

"No, I'm not."

Remus starts laughing, causing everyone to look at him. "Severus, stop overreacting. They aren't doing anything. And they are smart enough not to do anything else in front of us."

Severus just glares at Remus but doesn't say anything. Harry is still bright red and suddenly gets up. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight."

When Harry is gone Kingsley smacks Severus hard on the back of the head. "Go apologize. You embarrassed him."

"Ow! He's fine."

"He's embarrassed. There was no need for that. If they had gone further you could have said something. Get in there and talk to him. If you don't you do not want to find out what I have in store for you during workouts tomorrow."

Severus looks at the others and sighs before getting up and walking into the house. He finds Harry face down on his bed, still fully dressed. "Harry? Can we talk for a minute?"

"No."

"Harry, I'm sorry if I embarrassed you. That was not my intention. I got a little overprotective and shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry."

"You should trust me to not do anything else. And if I did, it's my choice. But just so you know, I'd never do anything in front of you anyway."

"I do trust you. But I'm also protective and therefore I don't necessarily trust him."

"Then you need to trust me to stop him if he tries anything. Look papa, I know you said it because you care about me. But next time, take me to the side and tell me in private. Not in front of everyone like that."

"I will. It was stupid and I shouldn't have."

"Apology accepted."

"Will you come back out?"

"No."

"Please? Kingsley threatened me with a harsh workout tomorrow if I didn't apologize and the only way to show that I did is if you come back out. Nobody will say anything."

"Maybe you deserve whatever he gives you."

"Would it make a difference if I told you he smacked me on the head quite hard? It still smarts."

"It does. Fine, I'll come back out. But one comment and I will be allowed to hex you."

"Deal. Now can you stop growing up? I want the innocent thirteen year old from last year back."

"No such luck. Just wait until I get married. You'll have to live in the same house knowing what we do at night."

"You'd continue living here with us?"

"Of course. I love living here and I love living with all of you. The house is certainly big enough. Besides, once there are kids I'll have free live in babysitters. It doesn't get better than that. We could go days without seeing one another around here if we really wanted to."

"What about privacy?"

"I have my own suite. If we want privacy, I don't even have to leave my rooms and I'd have my study and living room and a very comfortable lounge. To be honest, our firstborn will likely get the lounge converted into a nursery. It's like an apartment within the Manor. There are days we don't see Sirius and Remus, it would be just like that."

"I suppose you have a good point."

"If you ever find you someone I promise we'll convert some of the other rooms into a little apartment for you so you get the same benefit."

"I don't need that. I can't have kids so it'd just be me and one other person."

"Do you mind me asking what happened?"

"I got hit with a stray curse during a Death Eater attack. It was meant for the sixteen year old boy that was defending his family. I think it might not have been a stray but purposely aimed at me, but when questioned Bellatrix said it was an accident. She has a huge mean streak so it doesn't surprise me. But I have a son now and that's more than I could ever ask for."

Severus puts his arm around Harry's shoulder and squeezes slightly, causing Harry to smile up at him.

"I see you have made up," Kingsley says.

"Mostly because he admitted you had already smacked him. And he agreed that if anyone says anything I get to hex him. So Viktor, you want to join our workout in the morning? It's at six."

"No thank you. I workout enough with the Bulgaria team. I'm taking the day off."

"So how does it feel to be fifteen Harry?" Sirius asks.

"The same as fourteen to be honest."

Sirius laughs. "I always felt the same way until I turned thirty. Then suddenly I felt old."

"I felt the same way," Remus grins. Severus and Kingsley nod in agreement.

"Well I'm only halfway to thirty. I'll enjoy feeling young. Would anyone object if I slept out here? I feels so good by the fire."

"You may fall asleep out here but you'll wake up in your bed," Sirius says with a smile.

"Sounds good," Harry says, snuggling into Viktor's side.

It doesn't take long for Harry to be asleep, exhausted from a busy birthday. Sirius calmly picks him up out of Viktor's arms and carries him to bed.

The following morning at breakfast Severus comes in, lifts Harry up out of his seat and gives him a sharp swat on the behind. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Harry flushes red, sneaks a glance at Viktor and quickly sits back down. After breakfast Harry and Viktor quickly disappear into the backyard to spend some time together, and Sirius looks at Severus with questioning eyes.

"I found them asleep on the couch in Harry's suite early this morning. I was walking past to go check on a potion and the door wasn't fully closed. I warned Harry what would happen if I caught Viktor in his room."

"I see."

"I'm sure it was completely innocent, especially since they were on the couch. It's where Harry goes when he has a nightmare. I'll ask him about that later."

"How do you know that?"

"I've caught him there twice. He asked me not to tell you because you'd worry, but it's probably good if you know."

Sirius and Remus both sigh. "I wish we could do something for them. You think Viktor came across him having a nightmare?"

"No, but I'll ask him later when Viktor is gone how he came to be there. I can't see Viktor going into Harry's room at night, no matter what I might say against the boy."

That afternoon Harry is in his office reading Draco's list when Severus comes in and closes the door. "Look papa, before you say anything, nothing happened. I had a nightmare and went downstairs to get a drink. I walked into Viktor who had done the same, and when he realized I was upset he helped me calm down. We must have fallen asleep."

"I figured it was something like that. The graveyard again?"

Harry nods. "Cedric dying this time."

"I wish there was something I could do. Are you meditating before bed?"

"Usually I do, and it helps. Last night I fell asleep by the fire and didn't. I'm wondering if that helps. The meditation helps me relax which I think helps me sleep better."

"You know you can always come to me if you have a nightmare, right?"

"I know, but I know if I just walk for a minute and then calm myself down I can get back to sleep."

"Alright, just wanted to make sure you knew. What are you reading?"

"I asked Draco to make a list of things that would make his life easier or better, things that I might be able to help with. One of them I can easily fix I just need to talk to Andromeda and Ted. Most of these I can't do anything about. This one though I might need your help with. He wants to break away from his current group of friends because he believes they are a bad influence. He doesn't want to join our side in the war but he wants to remain neutral. However, he's afraid that he won't be safe in Slytherin if he becomes neutral. He's asking to be homeschooled. That's not possible with Andromeda and Ted both working, but I'm wondering if he can get his own private room within Slytherin? Do the Slytherin dorms have any?"

"Yes, there are two right by the front of the common room. They are for Slytherin Alumni guests if they need to stay in the castle for any reason. I'm sure if you talked to Minerva she'd let Draco stay in one of them. He'd still be a Slytherin but he wouldn't need to go through the whole common room or even stay in the dorms."

"Great. I'll do that."

"What was the thing you need Andromeda and Ted for?"

"He wants to have more freedom by being able to fly more, but right now he's not allowed unless he has an adult with him. I'm going to see if they'll let him fly if he has an elf to supervise. And elf could get an adult in seconds if something happens or if he left the wards so he'd be just as safe. That way he can do more outside instead of having to be inside all day while they're at work."

"That's a really good idea. I'm glad you are taking you Head of House duties so seriously Harry. Draco has been difficult for you in the past and yet you find it in you to help him."

"It's my duty, but I also feel bad for him. I was destined for my life from the moment I was born, but so was he. He never had a choice being raised by Lucius. Even if he doesn't join us, the fact that he doesn't want to join the Dark Lord either is promising."

"Yes it is. You won't ever get him to fight for the light, he's too prideful for that."

"I know, and we'll never be friends. But I will fulfill my duty. I need to get Dora to send a note to Andromeda and Ted to meet with them, followed by a meeting with Minerva and then a meeting with Draco. Maybe Minerva first so Andromeda and Ted can escort Draco here."

"Very well, I'll leave you to it."

"Dora?"

Dora walks into Harry's office, notepad in hand. "Yes Harry?"

"I need an appointment ASAP with Minerva, followed by an appointment with Andromeda, Ted and Draco. I want to speak to Andromeda and Ted first but I'm assuming you can supervise Draco while I speak to them."

"I'll arrange it. How soon?"

"First available."

"Very well. I'll let you know. Don't forget you have plans with Alex and Will tomorrow."

"I forgot about that. Can you see if they can come here instead? I think Will would enjoy seeing some magical things, it would help him relate to Alex. Alex can't do any at their house."

"I'll see what I can do."

Harry pulls out one of the books he had been reading on Runes for warding and starts reading, relaxing back in his chair and putting his feet on his desk. This is how Dora finds him an hour later. "You are meeting with Minerva in her office in thirty minutes. Andromeda, Ted and Draco will be here in an hour and a half."

"Thank you Dora. I'll get changed."

Harry walks up to his room to change into nice robes. He wants to make it clear he's there as Lord Black, not Harry. When he gets back downstairs Severus is already waiting for him. "Dora told me where you are going. I'm going with, I don't want you travelling alone."

"Great, you can apparate me. Much more dignified way of arriving than stumbling out of a fireplace. Thanks."

Severus laughs and they quickly apparate to the school. Severus is impressed when he watched Harry square his shoulders and stride up to the castle. As short as he is he does make an imposing figure and it's clear he's on a mission. They pass a few professors, all of whom do a double take when they see Harry. "Harry, meet me in the Entrance Hall when you're done."

Harry nods and continues his way up to the office. Severus stops to talk to Aurora Sinistry. "He looks impressive Severus."

"He's on a mission. He strikes an imposing figure when he's like that. I can promise the second he's succeeded he's back to a fifteen year old boy who just wants to play pranks and fly. How is the summer here?"

"Pretty good. I just got back to get ready for the new school year. Spent a few weeks on the coast of Wales. How about yourself?"

"Amsterdam and Italy. Finished brewing for the infirmary at the beginning of the summer and I've been teaching for so long there's not much preparation to do. It's actually been quite nice to be away from the castle for a while."

"You live with Harry, right?"

"Yes, along with Sirius and Remus and the Black Regent."

"It's strange to think you as a guardian to anyone."

"He calls me papa. I have to admit I was pretty shocked, but for some odd reason that boy has gotten under my skin and he's refusing to leave."

Aurora smiles. "I always knew one day someone would manage that."

Severus smiles back. Aurora was a teacher during his upper years at Hogwarts and he had always liked her. When Slughorn had been unavailable he had always been able to find Aurora willing to listen. "You've told me that before but I didn't believe it, until now."

"Well I'm glad it happened. Do you mind me asking why he's here?"

"You'll find out soon enough but I'd rather wait until he gets confirmation from Minerva."

"That's fine."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good afternoon Headmistress."

"Lord Black. I have to admit I'm curious as to why you requested such an urgent meeting. Have a seat."

Harry sits down and smiles. "I have a request to make on behalf of House Black. As you know, Draco Malfoy falls under my protection. I have had several conversations with him, and he does not want to join Voldemort's ranks after everything that's happened. While he won't join our side, even becoming neutral would be a suicide mission with Slytherin the way it is now. As homeschooling is not an option, I would like to request he be given one of the private guest rooms at the front of the Slytherin. It would allow him to sleep in safety once I've placed the appropriate wards on the door, while remaining a Slytherin. I also believe it might encourage some others to remain neutral when they see him doing it."

Minerva leans back in her seat. "I must admit I'm impressed with you taking your duties this seriously. I will allow it. If Mr. Malfoy wants to remain neutral I will do anything I can to keep him safe. What wards were you thinking?"

"I've been reading up on some Runes that I think will help, plus some basic wards. If you don't mind, could we go ahead and check the room and place the wards before it becomes known that he will be living there?"

"Absolutely. Follow me. We should include Professor Sinistra in this as his Head of House."

"That's fine. Severus is here as well, he may want to join us too."

They walk out of the office and down the stairs, finding Severus and Aurora talking in the Entrance Hall. "How convenient. Did you explain to her why I'm here?"

"No."

"Well can you explain while we walk down? I'm going to go ahead and place protective wards."

"I take it you got permission?"

"No, I'm going to place wards on a room I don't have permission to be in," Harry says sarcastically, rolling his eyes. Severus attempts a swat at his backside, which he dodges, smirking at him.

"Start walking brat. You have a meeting in 45 minutes."

On the way to the dungeons Severus explains everything to Aurora, who is impressed with the initiative. When they get to the room Draco will get Harry immediately starts casting detection spells. He catches an eavesdropping charm and cancels it. When he declares the room cleared, he casts several privacy charms along with protective wards. When he's done nobody except Draco's Head of House, Minerva, Harry and Draco can get into the room. Nobody can cast eavesdropping or other spying charms on the room. To make it extra secure he has cast everything in parseltongue and finishes it by applying several runes to anchor it. When he's done he turns around to see the three adults staring at him in shock. "What?"

"You just cast that in parseltongue," Aurora says in shock.

"Yes professor. It makes it more secure. The Runes were unnecessary but you can never be too careful."

"You did almost all of it nonverbal," Minerva says.

"Yes, I did. I cast nonverbal unless I haven't mastered a spell nonverbally yet. I hate to break this up, but I need to get home. I have a meeting schedule in twenty minutes. Headmistress, the only ones able to enter this room are Draco, you, Professor Sinistra and myself can enter. I need to key the both of you to the wards to verify your magical signature. Could you put your hands on the door please."

Both Aurora and Minerva put their hands on the door, after which Harry puts his on the door and casts a spell. "Thank you. There is no password. Just put your hand on the door. The wards will only respond if you are conscious so they can't just knock out and drag you here to open the door, should someone try. I've been doing some reading and found this charm. I'd say it's quite useful. You ready to go papa?"

"Yes, you're going to be late if we don't. Good to see you Minerva, Aurora."

When Harry and Severus are gone Minerva turns to Aurora. "I don't know what to say. And papa?"

"I know. He's definitely been doing some reading, but even if he did those spells are not easy to cast. He's definitely more powerful than he lets on in classes."

"We should stay quiet about this," Minerva says quietly.

"Agreed. I won't say a word."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry, Andromeda, Ted and Draco just arrived. They are waiting in the parlor."

"Thank you Dora," Harry says while striding towards his office. "Can you send in Andromeda and Ted, ask Dobby to bring tea and then attempt to entertain Draco while he waits?"

"Absolutely."

Harry pulls off his cloak and banishes it to his room before sitting down at his desk. Andromeda and Ted walk in a minute later and they exchange greetings. "Sit, please. This won't take long. Ahh, thank you Dobby. Tea?"

"No thank you," Andromeda says politely.

Harry pours himself a big mug and fixes it to his liking. "I apologize, my previous appointment took a little bit longer than I expected. I will explain what it was when I call Draco in here, but for now I have a request. I spoke with Draco about ways to make his life a little bit easier. He's going through a lot. A lot of his request simply can't happen while there's a war or impending war, but there is one thing I think you can help with. He feels like he's in prison because he has to stay inside the house all day since he can't go into the yard or fly without an adult to supervise. Would you be willing to allow a house elf to supervise? It would allow him to go into the yard and fly during the day, which will make him feel less cooped up. An elf can contain him if needed, and can also get one of you within seconds if necessary."

Andromeda and Ted look at one another before nodding. "We'll allow it, but one step out of line and he'll be confined again."

"Fair enough. Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry."

"Could you let Draco know to come in here?"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

When Draco has taken a seat, Harry leans back and takes a long drink of his tea. "Draco, I read your list. While most of it I can't do anything with at the moment, there are two items that we can do something about. From now on you are allowed in the backyard and are allowed to fly within the wards as long as a house elf is watching you. However, one step out of line and you will be confined again by your guardians. There will also be consequences from me should that happen. I'm trusting you to obey the rules and not leave the wards or do anything else to break the rules while you are given this extra freedom. Is that reasonable?"

"Yes sir. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Next is your request for homeschooling. That is simply not an option with both your guardians working full time jobs. However, I understand our fear for safety. That's why I met with Headmistress McGonnagal and you have been moved out of the Slytherin dorms. Instead, you will be living in one of the private guest rooms at the front of the Slytherin common rooms. I've already scanned the room and cleared it from all spells. I then put up every privacy and protection spell in existence on the room. The only ones able to enter are you, me, Headmistress McGonnagal and Professor Sinistra as your Head of House. There is no password, it's protected with a magical signature. I will need to key you to the wards when you get to school. Do you feel better about going back to Hogwarts?"

"Yes sir, thank you. I will be safe while still being a Slytherin. Thank you for listening to me and helping where you can."

"You're welcome. I will keep your list, and if at any other point in time I can help with other items I will. If at any point you want to add to the list, please let me know. If you feel threatened at Hogwarts, be honest and tell me."

"Yes sir."

"Thank you Lord Black. We appreciate you helping our ward," Ted says with a slight smile.

"You're very welcome. I'm glad I could help." Harry finishes his tea and refills his cup. "Would any of you like tea or biscuits? I think Dobby is trying to feed an army."

"No thank you."

"I have one last item. Draco, I want you to feel free to refuse and even if you do the offer remains open should you change your mind. I'd like for you talk to someone. It can be a mind healer, but it can also be a counselor. I think it would be good if you could talk to someone who can't talk to anyone else but who also doesn't have authority over you. A lot has been happening in your life and sometimes we just need to talk it through to make us feel better. If you accept I will find someone who is neutral in terms of the war, and he or she will be under a wizard's oath not to harm you and not to disclose anything about what you say without your permission."

"I'd like that," Draco says softly.

"I will arrange it and will let you know when your first appointment is. Is there anything any of you would like to discuss?"

"No thank you. We need to head home, it's almost time for dinner," Andromeda says, smiling.

Once they have left Harry puts his feet back up on his desk and relaxes. He's glad that's all done. Sirius finds him there and sits on the other side of the desk. "All done?"

"Yes. I think tonight I'm going to curl up on the couch and read. It'll be nice and relaxing."

Sirius smiles. "I don't envy you. You're handling it very well. A few more days and we're heading to Bulgaria for two days. We also need to do school shopping. You should let your friends know what day you want to go so you can meet them."

"Tomorrow. Today I want to forget I have a schedule."

"How about we go fly?"

"No energy."

"You're turning down a chance to fly?" Remus asks from the doorway before sitting down in a chair next to Sirius. "That's a first."

"It's mostly because I'm incredibly comfortable."

"You'll have to move," Severus says, also appearing in the office. "I didn't know this was the new hangout place. Dinner is ready and on the table if you're hungry."

Harry is the first one out of the office to everyone's amusement.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Are you ready Harry?"

"Yes. Everyone else?"

They all nod before saying goodbye to Dora and Dobby and apparating to Heathrow for their international portkey, where they portkey to Bulgaria. Viktor and his parents are waiting for them and greetings are exchanged.

"We will go to our home and have lunch, and then we will show you around town," Viktor says with a smile.

"Do you live far away?"

"Not really. It's about a five minute walk. We can apparate if you are tired?"

"No, it's fine, I was merely curious. So is Quidditch season over now?"

"Yes, it is. I'll miss it but it's nice to be done as well. I'm sure I won't miss it for long since I'll be playing at Hogwarts."

"If you make the team," Harry teases.

"True, but why wouldn't I?"

"What if I tried out for Ravenclaw Seeker?"

"You wouldn't!"

"You might have to give me some incentive not to," Harry says, a mischievous glint in his eyes. The adults are watching their banter in amusement.

Viktor stops walking and pulls Harry into his arms, kissing him gently. "Does this work?"

"Hmm, it's a good start."

Before Viktor can kiss him further they are interrupted by Viktor's father. "Gentlemen, we are in the middle of the street."

"Sorry dad. We shall continue this later."

"Hmm I might give him a room on the opposite side of the Manor from you."

Viktor rolls his eyes, which earns him a cuff on the head from his dad, before continuing to walk towards their home.

The Manor isn't overly imposing but still quite large with large pillars on either side of the front door. When they walk in they are in a large entryway with a living room on the left and what appears to be a dining room on the right. A large stairwell leads to the upstairs landing right in the middle of the hall. "The kitchen is next to the dining room and after that is the library. Over there on the left is my dad's office. The first floor has five bedrooms and the second floor has three. My parents and I have our rooms on the second floor. I will show you all to your rooms which are on the first floor."

Viktor leads them all up the stairs. "Sirius, Remus, you're room is right here. You have your own bathroom. Harry, you are right next to them. Severus, you are on the other side of Harry and you share a bathroom which is in between your rooms. Harry walks into his room which is simply but elegantly decorated. It has soft cream colors while the furniture is an imposing darker wood. He looks out the window, which has views of the backyard and smiles when he sees three large hoops. Viktor comes up behind him and puts his arms around him, smiling. "We might have to fly for a bit later. I have an extra broom."

"Sounds good. So who assigned the bedrooms?"

Viktor grins. "My dad did. And yes, the fact that you share a bathroom with Severus is on purpose. He said Sirius and Remus might like some privacy while Severus can keep an eye on you."

"Hmm I figured that's what it was. I like the house. It's large but not overly imposing or formal. It's how a house should be I think."

"I agree. Black Manor is twice the size of this but I don't mind the smaller size."

"I like having all my family in the same building, but if it wasn't for them I'd live in one of my smaller houses. With all of us there it doesn't feel as large."

"I noticed that when I was there. So how have you really been? You like tired."

"I am tired. I've just been doing a lot of reading and extra studying the past few days. Alex and Will were supposed to come but had to reschedule for after I get back because Will was sick. I've pretty much finished most of my fifth year textbooks."

"You need to relax."

"If I relax I get bored and when I get bored I find myself in trouble. I've done really well staying out of trouble lately and I'd like to keep it up."

"Sometimes an adventure is worth the sore bottom or detention."

Harry laughs. "True, but mostly afterwards not during. Once I'm back at Hogwarts and I have less responsibilities as a Lord I will need to play some pranks just to get them out of my system. I've been owling with the twins. Plus we need to initiate Eric into Hogwarts properly."

"That boy is doomed."

"You should have heard some of the ideas he has already come up with. He's doomed with or without our help. At least we can help him avoid a sore backside. Apparently his dad made it clear what would happen if he got a letter from school. With our help, we'll keep parental visits at a minimum."

"I'm not sure I've ever had a letter sent home. I don't even know what my dad would do."

"You might not want to find out. It's hardly ever anything good. We should go find everyone else before they come looking for us."

The afternoon is spent walking around town, and Harry finds that he likes it. "It's small, but not so small there's only one street. It does seem like everyone knows everyone though."

"They do, especially those of us who have lived here all our lives. It's half wizarding, half muggle but half the muggles know about magic because they are somehow related to a wizard or witch or related to someone married to one. They all know about my Quidditch career and they all know about the Tournament. They also know we are courting, which is why more people are stopping us. They simply want to see you. They've watched me grow up and are very protective of me."

"I love towns like that. Do you ever feel like you don't have privacy?"

"I don't anymore but I did when I was younger. I couldn't get away with anything because my parents would know before I even got home. I really hated that at times. There's about five of us boys around the same age who used to always hang out together. Three of us were wizards, three weren't. Anytime we'd get up to mischief we'd come home to find our parents waiting for us. We finally decided it took all the fun out of it. Now I just love it. I feel safe walking into town, whereas many other wizarding areas in the world I get stopped and photographed. It's nice to be able to walk freely here and not have to worry about that."

"I could see that. I only have that in Muggle areas in Britain. So we can't play pranks on this town?"

"My dad would have his paddle waiting for me when I got home if I even thought about it."

"Really? For a prank?"

"He does not like pranks unless the person you are pranking has accepted it."

"Bummer. It would ensure they'll always remember meeting me."

Viktor laughs and pulls Harry into his side. He knows Harry is just joking and wouldn't actually do that. "Maybe that's not a good way to be remembered. So tomorrow I'm taking you to the national team arena. I'm officially part of the team until the end of the season next week, and I thought you might enjoy flying on a professional pitch sometime."

"You're serious?"

"Yes, very."

"Wicked! Dad! Viktor is taking me flying at the National team pitch tomorrow!"

Sirius smiles at Harry's enthusiasm. "I'm not surprised with how Quidditch crazy you both are. I imagine it will be very different than the Hogwarts pitch."

"Most of my team will be there, they want to meet you," Viktor says.

"That makes me nervous."

"You'll be fine Harry," Severus says from behind them. "We've all seen you fly and know how good you are. You even beat Viktor half the time."

"I know papa, but that won't stop me from being nervous."

"I have to ask," Viktor's father says. "Why are you calling them dad and papa? I thought they were just your guardians?"

"Sirius and Severus have both blood adopted me, and all three of them are like fathers to me. It just happened. I might not call Remus that but that is also because I'm running out of ways to say dad that don't sound weird. Father is too formal for me."

"But aren't you emancipated?"

"I am, but I don't want to be alone in this world. I want parents, I just want to be legally and financially independent. It was necessary to get away from Dumbledore, and that was the best way to do it and not risk someone else taking advantage of me. At the time I didn't really know Sirius or Remus very well and I didn't get along with Severus at all. I love having parents again and having people take care of me, while at the same time keeping some control over my life." The only reason Harry is explaining is because he wants to be honest with Viktor's father, and he knows Viktor has already told him some things.

"That makes sense. So you have three fathers."

"Pretty much. Which is harder than it sounds. It's a good thing dad is like a kid half the time," Harry grins at Sirius.

Sirius jumps at Harry, who runs ahead trying to avoid him. Sirius runs after Harry and soon they are on the ground with Sirius tickling Harry.

"I see what you mean," Mr. Krum says, smiling. "How do you deal with that? Isn't he your mate?" he asks Remus.

"He is. And I know what you're thinking, but the only rule I have for him is not to play pranks on me, and not to put himself or others in danger. I'm not one of those controlling werewolves who wants to control every detail of my mate's life. I like how free spirited he is, and for the most part he knows when to act like an adult."

"That's good to hear. Friends of ours are in a werewolf bond, and he controls his mate's life to every last detail and he is incredibly strict. It's sometimes hard to see, even though we know both are in that relationship voluntarily and not being forced."

"I've seen bonds like that. Often bonds with vampires are the same way. I could never do that, I feel that it would change who he is and I like who he is. The only reason I have the rules we have is because I want to be able to sleep without having pranks played on me, and I want to keep him around for a long long time."

"Do you mind me asking how you discipline him?"

"The way most werewolves do but that's all I'll say about it. The only reason I'm telling you is because if Harry and Viktor stay together, Viktor will become part of my pack."

"Does that mean you would be able to discipline him?"

"In a traditional pack, yes. I won't with Viktor though. I will be more protective of him, but I won't do anything beyond a scolding or lecture. I have enough control over my wolf form to avoid that."

"Thank you for reassuring me on that. It actually is the reason I asked. Viktor is no stranger to discipline but I would object to that."

"As would I, so please don't worry about that."

"How do you handle the Full Moon?"

"I used to go to one of the other Black properties to transform. However, we have ensured it is now safe enough to transform at Black Manor, and along with the Wolfsbane it is much easier. I sleep through most of it. Harry says he knows it's close to the Full Moon because I get stricter and don't take jokes as well. Sirius is an Animagus and is with me during the Moons which really helps. He has said he finds it an interesting experience because I give into my wolf instincts which I normally suppress as much as possible."

"I have to admit I find it all very fascinating. So many werewolves refuse to talk about it, yet I think a lot of the prejudice against them would disappear if people had a better understanding. There's just so much unknown and people fear the unknown."

"I couldn't agree more. Let me stop those two and then you can ask me anything you want. I'm not ashamed of what I am. Sirius, Harry, stop. You're acting like a bunch of little kids and we are in public."

Sirius and Harry don't appear to be hearing Remus, and Severus and Viktor are just laughing. By now Harry has gotten the upper hand and it's Sirius who is trying to get away. Remus lifts Harry off Sirius, which gets their attention. "Start acting your age and cast scourgify if you would. You are filthy."

Harry sends a quick final tickle hex at Sirius before casting scourgify on himself and Sirius. "Little brat."

Harry just grins in reply. "Where to now?"

"We are close to home and it's almost dinner time. Let's go eat."

Harry and Viktor lead the group with Sirius and Remus behind them. Harry is on alert for any hexes. Severus and Mr. Krum close out the group. "You seem like the more reasonable one out of all of them."

Severus laughs. "They're all children at times. It's good to see though. We all come from broken homes and have found family in each other. It works for us, even if they drive me crazy at times. I won't deny I have my childish moments as well."

"Harry loves you guys, it's very obvious. The fact that he admitted to wanting and needing parents shows a great level of maturity. I was at first unsure about Viktor dating a fourteen year old, but after meeting Harry and seeing him in the Tournament I realized he's much more mature than any other fourteen year old I know."

"He hasn't had a choice. Viktor makes sure he spends time doing teenager things, and it's good for him. We all force him to act like a teenager at times, instead of an adult all the time. Yesterday I banned him from the library and told him to go play a game. He refused, saying he was really getting into the book he was reading. It was on Runes, not exactly light reading. I finally forcibly removed him from the library by lifting him out of the chair and walking him out. I then had to threaten him to get him to stay out of there. He ended up having fun playing games, but sometimes he just needs reminded that he's a kid."

"I can't imagine it being easy on him. He basically has to be two different people."

"He does, but that's why we're there. We make sure he's alright, and if that means kicking his butt out of the library, then that's what we'll do."

"Whose butt are we kicking?" Harry asks, having stopped to wait for them.

"Yours."

"I'd prefer if you didn't."

"I'm sure you do."

"Mr. Krum, Viktor says you have a library with lots of books I don't have at home. Would it be alright if I look around?"

"I've just been told you were banned from the library so it's up to your papa."

Harry looks at Severus with pleading eyes. "I will allow an hour after dinner. After that you come back out and socialize."

"What if we socialized in the library?"

"_Harry_."

"Oh fine. You should be happy you have a son with an interest in learning."

"I am, but being stuck in a book all day isn't healthy. You need human interaction."

"I suppose. Thanks!" Harry runs ahead, tickles Sirius in the side while passing and stops next to Viktor.

"I get an hour after dinner. I want to learn how to create wizarding space within something. There's mention of it in the books in our library but I'm hoping your library has more on it. Imagine how useful that would be. I know we have extension charms but it's not quite the same. I mean, with wizarding space I could make a room within a room. How could would that be?"

"Your guardians would allow you to try that?"

"Most likely not which is why I haven't told them what I'm doing. But think about it. If we could use wizarding space, you could have your own room within your dorm room where you could have privacy. I know it is going against all the rules of space and all that, which is why it's frowned upon and not done or taught, but it'd be awesome if I knew how to do it, even if I didn't actually do it."

"How much trouble would you be in if you got caught?"

"Sore backside amount of trouble. Likely including a long bout of grounding. But seriously, you aren't the least bit interested?"

"Harry, I would love to learn that. I'm just not sure if it's worth getting in trouble for. Why not wait until we are of age and then do it?"

"I doubt me being of age is going to stop any of them from punishing me for it. Look, I know it's a huge grey area. Like dark grey, and it's borderline dark magic. I'm not planning on using it everywhere, I just find it fascinating and want to learn how so I can figure out how it works. I mean, I'd probably use it at some point or another if it's useful, but that's not my main goal."

"I see this ending badly, but I can see you aren't going to let it go. You don't think they'll help you research if you're just researching because you want to learn how it works and not to use it?"

"I'd rather not ask. If I do it and get in trouble for it I can plead innocence. If I ask and they forbid it, I'm blatantly disobeying."

"You don't think they'd only forbid it if it was dangerous and they would be doing it for your own good?"

"I don't like when you make sense. You do realize I'm still going to continue researching this, right?"

"Oh I know. And I'm going to help you. But that doesn't mean I approve," Viktor grins.

Behind them Sirius and Remus share a look. "Should we tell them we can overhear?"

"No, but I'm very tempted to haul him over my knee now to prevent him from researching that any further. What is he thinking?" Sirius glares.

"That it's an interesting topic. Which I agree it is, but knowing how to create wizarding space makes it very tempting to use it which is why it's not taught and is borderline dark. It's useful and necessary in some instances but in others it messes with space too much and can be very dangerous if used too much. Especially once he realizes that time runs differently within wizarding space. I won't stop you if you discipline him now."

"What if we just told him we know and tell him what will happen if he continues?"

"That's probably better. We'll mention it at dinner so Severus is aware."

As promised, Remus brings it up at dinner. "Harry, Sirius and I overheard your conversation with Viktor. I know you are researching wizarding space. We want you to stop."

"Researching something isn't wrong. Using it would be which I don't plan on doing."

"We overheard your entire conversation. You intend to at least try it so you know how. Do not lie to me," Remus says sternly.

Harry glares back at Remus but doesn't say anything. He sees Sirius and Severus looking just as stern.

"Harry, if we find out you are still researching it, or even worse trying to create it, you will find yourself with a very sore bottom and very grounded," Sirius says. "Is that clear?"

Harry doesn't respond and just glares back. "_Harry_. Do you need an example of it now?"

"No," he says petulantly.

"Then answer my question. Is that clear?"

"I don't like it."

"I don't care. There are lots of dangers involved that you do not understand. You either agree to stop or we are going up to your room for a private conversation."

When Harry doesn't respond Sirius gets up out of his chair, grabs Harry by the arm and makes him stand. "Excuse us."

When they get to Harry's room Sirius gives him a sharp swat on his behind before sitting down on the bed and standing Harry in front of him. "Why are you resisting so much?"

"Why can't I research it? It's like you don't trust me not to misuse the information."

"I do trust you, but I've seen what the knowledge can do to someone. My father was driven insane by it. Time works differently within wizarding space. You age inside the space as normal but it's like a time bubble because time moves at half the speed outside of it. It is not good for your health. It is also highly addicting because it gives you more hours in the day whenever you want. This is why it is no longer taught. I need you to promise me Harry, and we will not leave this room until you do. I will not risk you getting caught up in that. And a paddle on your bare backside will be the least of your problems if you break that promise."

Harry looks at Sirius' knees. He still doesn't like it, but he now at least understands why Sirius is so serious about it. "Harry, please. I will worry constantly if you don't. I know you are curious, and I know the danger of it attracts, but I'm worried. Now you are already in trouble for your attitude, do not make it worse."

Harry can hear the worried and pleading undertone in Sirius' voice and knows he's seen something related to wizarding space that terrifies him. "How much trouble?"

"You're up to four smacks. You know I don't do well with worry and you gave a lot of attitude while guests at someone's house. You could have always asked to discuss it further after dinner or when we got home. Instead you acted like a child."

Harry sighs. "Fine, I promise not to research it or try it. I don't want you to worry. But that doesn't mean I'm happy about it."

"Thank you. I've seen what wizarding space can do to someone, and it terrifies me to even consider that happening to you. Bend over."

Harry does as he's told and Sirius gives him four hard smacks. He wants Harry to feel them through dinner to ensure he doesn't give attitude about this. He's embarrassed that his son acted like that in front of the Krums.

"Let's get back to dinner. Behave. If you feel you need further explanation about this please wait until we are back home. We are guests here."

"Yes dad."

Sirius and Harry walk back downstairs and quietly sit back down at dinner. "I apologize for the interruption," Sirius says.

"Don't worry about it. We got the same promise from Viktor. Hopefully both boys will obey. Now let's talk about something more fun."

Viktor and Harry share a look across the table, Harry squirming slightly to get comfortable. After dinner Harry joins everyone else in the living room instead of the library. When Severus gives him a questioning look he just puts his head on Viktor's shoulder. "Not interested."

Severus, Sirius and Remus share a look and agree that Severus will talk to Harry later that night when everyone has gone to bed and they can take their time.

"We'll leave right after breakfast to go flying," Viktor says. "It can get quite hot in the afternoon so the morning is usually better."

"Sounds good. I'm going to bed. Goodnight," Harry says.

It doesn't take long for everyone else to go to bed as well. Severus walks into Harry's room to see him laying in bed, wide awake. Severus sits down on the side of the bed and wipes the hair out of Harry's eyes.

"Want to talk about it?"

"It's just not fair. I agreed because I don't want Sirius to worry but I really wanted to do this."

"One day I will research it with you if you still want to, but for now you have to focus on other things."

"Do you promise?"

"I promise that if you are still interested when you are my age, I will research it with you. Does that sound good?"

"That's like twenty years from now."

"Yes it is. By then you'll have enough life experience to make the right decision. You might even have children then and understand where we are coming from."

"I'll agree to that. You think Sirius is upset?"

"He's worried you won't obey."

Harry snorts. "He gave me a good idea what to expect should I disobey. I'm not stupid."

Severus raises an eyebrow. "Good to know. You know we do this because we love you, right?"

"I know. But I'm a teenager and I'm allowed to sulk."

"Yes you are. Don't sulk too long, you'll want to be wide awake to show up Viktor in front of his team tomorrow."

"I'm pretty excited about that."

"I'm sure you are. Goodnight son."

"Night papa."

The following morning Harry is in a decidedly better mood. He has to put his research on hold for twenty years, but he's certain he'll find something else to learn about as there's a lot of things he doesn't know yet about magic. It must really mean a lot for Sirius to react like that, and he feels bad for worrying his dad. The first thing he does when he gets to breakfast is give Sirius a hug from behind. "Sorry for being a brat. Don't worry, I'll keep my promise."

"Thank you. I promise I'll make it up to you. This just means a lot to me."

"I know. And after I was done feeling sorry for myself I realized that. Don't worry about me."

"I always worry about you. I wish I could keep you locked in a room at all times so nothing can happen to you. Too bad that would be considered child abuse."

"I could still stub my toe. And I'd probably get so bored I'd start climbing on top of the wardrobe which risks me falling off. Just admit it, I attract trouble no matter where I am."

"Which is unacceptable. How about if I wrap you in bubble wrap or cushioning charms?"

"Only if you leave it on when I've earned a spanking."

"Ahhh. No. You do know you could have used your get out of punishment free card for this one?"

"I know, but I know this means a lot to you. I didn't agree because I'm worried about the punishment. I agreed because I love you."

Sirius smiles and digs into his breakfast.

Harry eats quickly, ready to go flying. "What kind of broom do I get to use Viktor?"

"Firebolt 2."

Harry's head snaps up. "There's a Firebolt 2?"

"Not yet in stores. But the professional teams got the option of buying them a few weeks ago. Let me know if you like it."

Harry is practically bouncing in his seat, causing everyone to laugh. "Alright, I think Harry is going to explode if we don't leave," Severus grins.

Everyone laughs and they get ready to go before apparating to the pitch. The rest of the team is already in the middle of the pitch waiting. "Viktor! We thought you'd never show!"

"We're here now. Let's fly! Everyone, this is Harry. Harry, this is everyone. Warm up first?"

Everyone nods and Viktor tosses a broom to Harry. Harry looks at it, grins and shoots up into the sky along with everyone else. "Viktor, this broom is amazing! It's just as fast as the Firebolt but with smoother turns. Are you flying one too?"

"Yes. That one is yours."

"What do you mean?"

"It's yours. You might not have noticed but I didn't have a birthday gift for you. It's because this broom wasn't in yet."

"Viktor! It must cost a fortune!"

"I get a good discount. Now enjoy it. I'm going to release the practice snitch. Let's play a game."

The rest of the team is flying on the other end, watching them while flying themselves. Soon Harry and Viktor both spot the snitch and start chasing it. It takes a while but finally Harry catches it. They land and Harry gives Viktor a hug. "This broom is amazing. Thank you. It'll be hard to find something for your birthday to rival this."

"Don't worry about it. I want it to be equal when we fly together. Well played."

"Are you sure you don't want to join our team?" The new team captain asks Harry. "That was some impressive flying for a fifteen year old."

Harry grins. "I have too much going on to even consider it, and no offense if I joined any team it'd be England."

"In that case we're happy you are too busy."

Harry laughs. "This pitch is amazing. It's strange flying and being completely surrounded by seats as opposed to just a few pillars with seats. I can't imagine what it would be like completely full."

"It's an adrenaline rush," one of the players says. "The cheering. The crowds going crazy. It truly is amazing."

"You want to win for them as much as you want to win for yourself," Viktor says.

"Well you can do that for Ravenclaw this fall. Of course you'll have to start beating me first. Would be embarrassing if they put all their faith in you and you lost to a mere fifth year," Harry teases.

The rest of the team laughs and Viktor pulls Harry flush against him. "I can always start distracting you in other ways."

"Hmm you'll have to try harder than this."

Viktor starts to kiss Harry only for the rest of the team to whistle and them to pull apart. "We need to get going. Harry has to leave this evening and I intend on showing him around some more. Thank you for meeting us here."

Harry says goodbye to everyone and they walk to meet Harry's guardians. "It sucks that I have to leave a day early."

"I know. But there's only three weeks and then school starts. Come on, I want to show you my favorite hang out."

That evening just before dinner they say goodbye to the Krums. Harry has a luncheon the next day that he didn't want to miss, so they really have to get back. It's hosted by Lady Bones, and with their new Alliance and who she is within the Ministry he wants to cultivate that friendship.

"Welcome back. Harry, Alex and Will are coming here day after tomorrow. They just confirmed."

"Oh, thanks! I'm glad we were able to reschedule for a day that works for all of us."

"Apparently Alex insisted. He asked for a list of your free days and told me he'd make it work. From what I understand they're skipping some charity event."

"I doubt he minds."

"He sounded quite excited. I have to remember to ask him what the event was."

"I think most events like that are boring to a teenager," Sirius says. "Harry is lucky Susan will be there tomorrow."

"No, she won't be. I owled her to see if she would be and she said she already made other plans before she knew I was coming. She told me she would cancel her plans if I wanted but I told her not to worry about it. I'll make small talk and then leave when it's polite to do so."

"Good plan. You need to make a list of what you'll need in Diagon Alley. I think you already have some of your books but you need new school robes."

"I'll have Dobby do it."

"I want you to do it yourself. No need to get lazy."

"Dad, I just want to do nothing."

"Come on, I'll write while you list. I won't let you pass off everything to your elf. Right now you are busy, but if you get used to having your elf do everything you will eventually become lazy even when you aren't busy with other things."

"Fine. But you're writing. Put uniform down," Harry says while summoning parchment and quill.

"You need everything?"

"I'm sure I do," Harry says, walking towards his closet.

"Try some on to see if you do."

Harry sighs but quickly takes off his trousers and shirt before putting on his uniform shirt and trousers. "See, they both need replaced."

Harry changes the outfit for his Quidditch uniform. "Need a new Quidditch uniform as well."

Harry takes off the Quidditch uniform, throwing it on the discard pile, and pulling out a pair of casual trousers. He continues trying on clothes, quickly creating discard and keep piles. He is standing between the piles in nothing but his pants when Severus and Remus come in to see what they are doing. "I think I might as well get a whole new wardrobe. My dress robes still work but they won't for much longer."

"We'll just do a whole new wardrobe. We expected you to grow this year with eating regularly and now working out. What are you doing with the discard pile?"

"Give it to Madame Malkin for store credit. She can sell it second hand. It'd be a waste to throw it out."

"Are you going to put on clothes at any point or just stand there in your pants?" Severus smirks.

"This is actually quite comfortable. But fine, I'll put on my pajama pants if this makes you uncomfortable."

"Harry, they're boxers. You're basically wearing shorts. I was joking, most teenagers are embarrassed to be seen in so little. You should have seen the boys in the dorms whenever I came in to do bed check and they were still changing."

Harry laughs while putting on his pajama pants. He doesn't like sleeping with a shirt during the summer, it's too hot. "It doesn't bother me. We're all men." He looks down and grins. "Add pajama pants to my list."

"Now books."

"I have all of them. I saw that when I got the list," Harry says. "Also, I looked up the school rules and I want to have all my House crests on my school robes along with the Hogwarts crest I normally have. I know it would get crowded with Potter, Black, Gryffindor, Peverell, Prince and Hogwarts but I want to show my status."

"That's a good idea. I've seen Heirs do that before," Sirius says. "James had it his seventh year. Usually when you do that you make them a little bit smaller so it's not as overwhelming."

"I'll need to stop at Gringotts and get copies of each crest so we're certain Madame Malkin uses the correct ones. I'm assuming you don't mind me using the Prince one?" he asks Severus.

"I'd be honored. You're my Heir Harry, you can act like it. I'm having it put on my robes as well, so it will be obvious to anyone who pays attention that you are my Heir. All the other Heirs will already know, but there are quite a few other students who actually pay attention to these things. Don't be surprised if there's talk."

"There's always talk. Alright, I think that's all I need."

"There is something we want to mention. Hagrid has stepped down as professor for Care of Magical Creatures. He said he loves the job but would rather just be the groundskeeper. Because it was so last minute, the Ministry suggested one of their employees from the Magical Creature department. She has the credentials for the job, but keep in mind that she is a Ministry employee and we think she is there to spy on the school for Fudge. I know you're not taking that class, but you'll still have dealings with her especially as Prefect."

"Wonderful. Ministry interference at Hogwarts. That's exactly what we need."

"We aren't happy about it either but all we can do is wait and see how this plays out."

"Thank you for the warning."

"Now since you're already in pajamas, why don't you get an early night?" Remus asks, seeing that Harry looks tired.

"That's not a bad idea. Traveling is exhausting," Harry says before conjuring a bag and putting all his clothes in it. "Don't let me forget this."

Harry pushes some of the 'keep' clothes off his bed and crawls under the cover, causing Severus to glare at him before flicking his wand to send the clothes back to the wardrobe. Harry can hear him mumbling something about messy teenagers and starts laughing.

"Papa, if you are like that over a few items of clothing, how did you live in a dorm?"

"I kept my part of the dorm clean and since I was closest to the door I could ignore the rest. Once I became Head of House I started enforcing strict rules. All students had a bedtime based on what year they were in and I did bed checks. I did random room checks and if a room was not clean the student would not only be forced to clean it, they would also find themselves in detention. Anything left behind in the common room after bedtime was put in a box and you had to do a chore to get it back."

Harry is staring at him. "Remind me to thank the Hat for not putting me in Slytherin."

Sirius nods in agreement. "I'm glad Gryffindor wasn't like that. If it got to the point where smells started coming from the room a Prefect would ask us to clean, but besides that the elves made our beds and picked up our laundry and the room looked like a storm just came through. And we most definitely did not have a bedtime."

"Children need to get enough sleep at night and eleven year olds can't be expected to be responsible enough to go to bed when they should. Sixth and Seventh years do not have bedtimes, they are old enough to know for themselves. Fifth year Prefects are also exempt. And teaching them to keep things organized and clean will only help them once they have their own place especially if that place does not have elves to do everything for them."

"Do you think Professor Sinistra also enforces those rules?"

"She told me she is keeping everything the same as before since she agreed with it all. She said those were normal rules in all Houses when she was in school."

"Still glad we don't have those rules. I'd be in detention all the time."

"No, you'd learn really fast to simply obey. Do you remember in your first year when Draco challenged you to a duel and he didn't show?"

"Yes, why?"

"He didn't show because I have charms on the dorms to alert me when a student leaves their room after bedtime, and charms on the common room to alert me after curfew. I caught him right as he was coming out of the common room. He never tried to leave his room again after that."

"Your detentions aren't that bad."

"They are for the Slytherins. You think I was hard on you, it's nothing compared to how I was with my own House. I expect obedience and they knew better than to disobey. And if they did I made sure they regretted it. I might have gone easy on them out in public, but they knew if they broke a rule even if I got them out of punishment I would still punish them once we got back to the dungeons. It was rare for me to have to discipline anyone above first year."

"Even more glad I wasn't in Slytherin then."

"You wouldn't have done half the stuff you did if I had been your Head of House because you wouldn't have made it out of your room let alone the common room without me knowing. Most of your adventures were done after hours. And if you had managed somehow to get away I would have been waiting for you when you got back."

"Out of curiosity, mostly because Minerva never actually punished me for any of it except when she caught us out at night. What would you have done?"

"Started with detention. If that didn't work, detention and grounding you to your dorm. If that still didn't stop you, I would have then requested permission from your guardians to paddle your behind after your adventure with the stone and down in the Chamber. I have a feeling we never would have made it that far though."

"Yep, definitely glad I wasn't a Slytherin. I probably would have punched Draco in the nose within the first week and get myself in trouble that way. Even though it would have been nice to know someone actually cared enough about me to say something when I broke the rules."

Severus laughs. "I agree, it would have been explosive. You were sorted in the House you were meant to be in those years. Now you are where you were supposed to have been from the start. You now also have people who care. And I care enough to tell you to get some sleep. I'm accompanying you to the luncheon tomorrow and don't want you to fall asleep on me."

"Sleep does sound good. We don't have to leave until eleven, right?"

"Right."

"Alright. If I'm not at breakfast, let me sleep. I want to sleep in."

"As long as you promise to eat something when you wake up."

"I promise. Night papa. Night dad. Night Moony."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good morning sleepyhead. You have about twenty minutes before you have to leave. Usually there's a social hour before there's food so you mind want to eat something now."

"Good morning Moony. I'll have something to eat. I'm actually quite hungry. I can't believe I slept that long."

"You must have needed it. It's what summer is for."

"I suppose," Harry says while walking into the kitchen. He finds a cup of yoghurt and walks back to the living room to eat it. "Do you know what the dress code for these things is?"

"Casual but nice robes."

"Hmm, so not formal robes. That's good. I should probably go get changed."

Just before eleven Harry meets Severus in the living room. "Are we apparating or portkey?"

"Apparition. Most will be using a portkey but Lady Bones said she understood you might be apprehensive to take a portkey and she does not mind us knowing where her Manor is."

"That is very thoughtful. I have to admit I'll never think positively about a portkey again. We should get going."

When they get to the luncheon they see that there are a lot of people already there. They great Lady Bones and to Harry's excitement Susan is there as well. After the formal greeting Susan looks at her aunt, who nods that she can leave and Susan walks off with Harry. Severus grins at Amelia. "He didn't think she'd be here."

"She rescheduled the plans she had. She didn't think he should have to be here with just adults."

"That was very nice of her."

"She thinks the world of Harry. She's never had a lot of friends but he has always been nice to her. Most kids want to be friends with her because their parents told them to in order for them to get closer to me. Harry is one of only a handful of people who talks to her without ulterior motive. At least we don't think there's ulterior motive."

"There's not. Harry has mentioned before that he enjoys spending time with Susan, that she is a very nice girl. I think Harry understands what it's like to be befriended for the wrong reasons. I'm going to mingle, I will speak to you more later. I'm holding up the line."

"Severus?" Amelia says before he can walk away. "Susan has mentioned how much Harry has changed over the past year. Now that we know you are one of the people responsible for that I want to thank you. That boy needs good influence in his life, and from what I can see he has it. I've never liked how he gets treated by most of our world and I've always worried, knowing his heritage. If I had known he wasn't aware of his heritage I would have done something sooner. I know I've not always treated you the way I should have, and I apologize for that."

"Thank you Amelia. Apology accepted. I played my part well, too well in most cases."

Severus walks around, making small talk with those he knows. He keeps an eye on Harry the whole time, and smiles when he starts talking to the other guests, Susan by his side the whole time. It's good for Harry to have a friend his age with the Lords and Heirs, it will make all formal events more fun for him.

When Harry and Severus get home that evening, Harry is smiling. "It was mostly boring but I'm really happy Susan was there. She's really nice."

"I'm glad you two get along. It's nice to have someone your age at formal events, and Amelia goes to most of them so I'm sure now that you'll be there Susan will as well when you're not at school."

"Is it dinner time yet?"

"Cub, it's barely tea time," Remus says, shaking his head.

"Well, that works. I'm assuming there's biscuits?"

"I can't say I object to you wanting biscuits. We need to get some meat on your bones. Come on, let's go see if there's anything with chocolate."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alex, Will. Welcome to Black Manor. Will, I hope the portkey wasn't too bad?"

"Little nauseating but not terrible. I can't imagine travelling like that all the time."

"I don't like it either. Let me show you around and then we can do something. Alex, anything you want to do?"

"Can we fly? I haven't been able to all summer."

"We can for a bit but since Will can't we shouldn't for too long. Will, you'll see magical things around here. You are allowed to know about it because your brother is a wizard. If you're curious about anything, let us know and we'll explain it or show you."

Harry shows them the Manor, ending in his office. "And this is my office. Let's go fly and Dobby will have lunch ready after that."

"Dobby?" Will asks.

"Dobby. My house elf. Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

Will is staring at Dobby with wide eyes. "Dobby, Will is Alex' brother. He has never seen a House elf. They couldn't be here for my birthday so he didn't get to meet you. Will, Dobby is a house elf. He does all the cooking and cleaning and anything else we need. They are magical creatures, so he can do magic. All I have to do as his Master is say his name and he'll come, no matter where I am. I could be on the other side of the country and he'd still respond."

"That's amazing."

"Yes it is. Dobby is the best. Thank you Dobby. Now let's go fly."

"I thought Alex was joking when he said he could fly on a broom."

"Oh it's very real. If Alex makes the team you should see if you can get away from school to come watch a match. They are usually on Saturday. Alex, did you bring your broom?"

"No, sorry."

"It's alright, we have extras. Come on, the pitch is out back."

Soon Alex and Harry are flying while Will looks on in amazement. After a little while Harry lands next to Will. "If you want you can sit in front of me and I can take you up."

"Really?"

Harry can see the excitement in his eyes. "Yes, really. Come on, sit in front of me. I'll have to have my arms around you to hold on, unless you want to sit behind me. If you sit behind me, hold onto my waist really tight."

Will sits behind Harry on the broom and squeezes him tight around the waist. Harry holds back a laugh and slowly takes to the air. He gives Will time to get adjusted. "You alright?"

"This is awesome!"

"Ready to go faster?"

"Yes!"

Harry speeds up and soon he is flying all over the pitch, dipping and rising. He flies with Will for a while before landing along with Alex, who is grinning at his brother. "Awesome isn't it Will?"

"Yes! Now I know why you're constantly talking about it."

"Let's go eat," Harry says with a smile. He takes Alex' broom and sends both brooms back to the cupboard. "And you are allowed to do magic here Alex. The wards prevent the Ministry from being able to trace underage magic use."

"I didn't even bring my wand."

"Alex! You should always have your wand. You are allowed to use it in self-defense so you should have it regardless. I'm pretty sure you've been told that before by at least one of your professors."

"I have," Alex says looking sheepish.

"I ought to hex you."

"Please don't."

"Hmm. I'll refrain for now. Mostly because I'm hungry. Ahh looks like cold cuts. I love cold cuts."

Alex and Will share a look before joining everyone else at the table. "Hello professors. I apologize for not greeting you when we got here earlier."

"Don't worry about it. And call us by our first names in private boys."

"Yes sir. I loved being able to fly again. Too bad I don't have my wand so I can practice some spells."

Severus gives Alex a stern look. "Young man, I remember telling you to always have it on you."

"Harry already scolded me. I forgot."

"Hmmm," Severus says, giving Harry an approving look. "Did he offer to hex you?"

"He said he wasn't going to because he's hungry."

Harry grins. "I learned from the best. You always threaten to hex me."

"Hmmm if you were learning you would have hexed him. I would have if you went somewhere without your wand."

"No, you'd apparate me home, apply my wand to my backside with significant force, and then apparate us back. This time with my wand. No hexing involved."

Severus grins at Harry. "You have a point. Now Sirius over there would simply hex you."

"I would. With a very strong stinging hex to his behind."

"I feel like my backside is in a lot of danger around you lot. I'll just never forget my wand. Good thing I never take it off."

"So what are you kids doing this afternoon?" Remus asks.

"Can we play exploding snap?" Alex asks. "And wizard's chess? I just want to be surrounded by magical things."

"We can if Will agrees."

"Sure. I'd like to learn more about the world Alex lives in most of the year."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The rest of the summer is fairly uneventful for Harry. He enjoyed a long day at Diagon Alley with his friends. He spend time in the lab with Severus, read a few books, learned a bunch of new spells and attended a formal ball. It's now the day before they have to be back at Hogwarts and Harry looks around at his guardians with a smile. He can't remember ever having had a better summer.

AN: Sorry for the abrupt ending to the summer. There really was nothing left happening that I wanted to focus on and the chapter was already really long. Next we are back at Hogwarts? What will happen with the new professor? For those who are confused: in this chapter Severus is with Harry as his guardian, not as the Slytherin Head of House. Sinistra is the Slytherin Head of House which she was included.

UPDATE: For some reason this site is not letting me answer your questions through reviews. If your question is not answered in the next chapter, feel free to send me a private message. I'm not getting notifications when a review is left either until randomly I'll suddenly have a bunch, so something is definitely going on. So while I normally reply to as many reviews as I can, if you don't get a reply that's why! Dumbledore's trial will come up. Anything else not mentioned will be done through memory/flashback.


	46. Chapter 46

AN: Thank you for all the story suggestions! I found the story I was looking for :) I love the Snape/Harry banter in that story and am glad I found it again. Too bad it was never finished. Also, for some reason is not letting me reply to all reviews. Just to clarify: Snape is not Head of House anymore, Sinistra is. I did make a mistake and named her Septima Sinistra when it should be Septima Vector and Aurora Sinistra. I have gone back and fixed Chapter 45 to say Aurora so that it is accurate, but just a heads up for those who don't want to go back and re-read :)

Chapter 46

Harry is sitting at the Gryffindor table with his friends, waiting for the First years to be brought in for the sorting. He enjoyed the train ride and catching up with his friends, even though he's seen all of them throughout the summer. When the first years are brought in the Hall gets quiet and everyone watches the sorting. Harry is only partially paying attention. As the fifth year Ravenclaw prefect he'll have to help lead the Ravenclaw first years to the common room later and give them the rules.

On the train the Head boy and girl had gone over their duties with them, which for fifth year prefects meant all-house common room supervision while the sixth and seventh years rotated hall patrol at night. Besides that they each had a night that they were required to be in the common room in case a student needs a prefect. He has already seen his new schedule and knows he'll be swamped.

Besides workouts five days a week before breakfast, he has Quidditch on the two days he doesn't have workouts. Then two classes before lunch and two after lunch Monday through Thursday. On Monday and Wednesday after dinner he has Prefect duties, while on Tuesday and Thursday he has extra lessons. Then on Saturday morning he has Quidditch after breakfast, while on Sunday after breakfast he has extra lessons. He knows he's extra busy because he's joining the regularly scheduled Arithmancy class this year as opposed to having it as extra lesson. He has Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons off but with it being an OWL year he will need the time to stay on top of his work, plus he has Lordship duties to fulfill. While those duties will be lessened during the school year, they won't disappear completely. He told Dora to plan to be at Hogwarts after lunch on Fridays so they can go over everything from that week, and to only send him urgent items any other time.

Severus requested an office to be added to Severus' quarters and Harry now has his own study there so he can work there. It will make it much easier for him to keep all his Lordship things straight and in one place. He is startled out of his musings when Minerva announces that Hagrid has stepped down as professor and Professor Donald Layden has taken his place. Harry looks up to see a stern looking man stand up and give a slight nod to the students.

"He looks cheerful," he whispers to Neville.

"He's Ministry."

"I know. Supposedly he's qualified for the job, but I wonder if he's here to teach or to spy."

"We'll find out soon enough. You don't have that class, do you?"

"No, I dropped it. I have too much to do as it is," Harry grins. "Not sure I mind."

"I'll let you know how he is," Neville says before turning towards the food that has appeared on the table. "When is the re-trial for Dumbledore?"

"Not sure. Amelia has been pushing it back with everything she could find. I think right now it's scheduled for Friday afternoon, but I'm sure it will change. I told Dora to let me know when it's definite."

"I see Eric got sorted Gryffindor."

"As if that was ever in question," Harry grins. "He's definitely a Gryffindor. What days do you have supervision?"

"Monday night All-House common room and Wednesday night Gryffindor common room," Neville says.

"Good! We have the same nights. At least I'll have supervision with someone I get along with. Hermione, what days do you have?"

"Tuesday All-House, Thursday Gryffindor."

"Who do you have All-House with?"

"Susan I believe," Hermione says. "What days do you have extra lessons?"

"Tuesday and Thursday evening and Sunday morning. Friday afternoon I have Lordship stuff. Saturday morning Quidditch."

"Sounds like you'll be busy," Dudley says from just down the table.

"I will be, but it's alright. I don't mind. Hey Alex, are you going to tryout for Chaser?"

"Yes. Tryouts are next weekend aren't they?"

"Yes, they are during the normal Saturday practice time. Anyone who wants to tryout is welcome to come to practices this week so make sure you show up, it will help on Saturday."

"I'm assuming the schedule is on the bulletin board?"

"Yes, but it's Tuesday and Friday at five thirty. Saturday is right after breakfast at 9."

"Five thirty in the morning?" Alex asks incredulously.

"Yes," Harry smirks. "It's actually not too bad. I'll make sure you're awake."

When dinner is starting to come to a close Harry walks over to the Slytherin table. "Mr. Malfoy. Professor Sinistry will show you your room after the prefects have led the first years out of the Hall. I will come key you into the wards when I am done with the Ravenclaw first years."

"Yes Lord Black. I will wait for you."

Harry walks back to the Ravenclaw table, knowing that him telling Draco in front of everyone has put everyone under notice that Draco is under the protection of House Black. When Minerva dismisses everyone to their dorms Harry helps lead the first years to the Ravenclaw common room.

"First years!" He says loudly. He has been assigned the start of year speech, and he knows it's because of who he is and people are more likely to listen. "There aren't many rules, but they are all very important. They are posted on the bulletin board should you forget or want to read up on them. These are the Ravenclaw rules. Should you wish to read all the Hogwarts rules, please refer to Hogwarts: A History. As you are sorted into Ravenclaw I have a feeling you will all want to read it. There are only five copies in the library. Please be courteous to your classmates and return it when you are done reading. Professor Flitwick is our Head of House. He is always available should you need him. He will meet with each of you within the first week to get to know you. He will monitor your progress both in class and out of class. Social life at Hogwarts is just as important as class work. Just because you're in Ravenclaw doesn't mean you can't make friends in the other houses. The All-House common room is an excellent place for you to spend time and get to know the other students. It is open until curfew and there will always be at least two prefects there to supervise. You are to be in this common room or your dorm at curfew. If you are late a scolding will be the least of your problems. Ravenclaw is now your home. Respect one another and respect authority. Us prefects are here to help you any way we can so please don't hesitate to come to us if you need anything. The sixth and seventh year male prefects are in the prefect bedroom on the boys side of the dorms. The fifth, sixth and seventh year female prefects are in the prefect bedroom on the girl side. Simply knock and someone will come to the door. If you need me, my door is right there at the back of the common room. If you knock I will know you are there and come help. It doesn't matter what time of day or night, you need someone we will help. Boys, your dorms are on the left, girls your dorms are on the right. The prefect bedroom is the first bedroom in the hall. Your trunks and other belongings have already been brought to your dorm. Your owls will already be in the owlery. You will also find a simplified map of Hogwarts on your desk with the route to breakfast marked. It also has your class schedule should you wish to study the route you need to take tomorrow. Keep in mind the stairs move and rooms have a tendency to appear and disappear so the map is not 100% accurate. Any questions, let one of us know. For now, get unpacked and a good night sleep. Make Ravenclaw proud!"

The students all leave for the dorms and Harry sits down on the couch next to Viktor. "Nice speech."

"Thanks," Harry grins. "I had maybe an hour to prepare for that. I just made it up as I went along."

"Well you did just fine. It's smart to direct Ravenclaws towards books. How did they do it in your first year?"

"They told us the basics and then told us not to break them. Percy was the prefect giving the speech and it took forever. I didn't want to keep going, most first years just want to get unpacked and relax."

"True. Are you unpacked?"

"It's wonderful knowing the spells that unpack for you. Oh and Dobby came to help when he was done with yours."

"Dobby is wonderful," Harry says with a smile. Dobby suddenly pops in with those mugs of hot chocolate. "Dobby! Thank you, these are amazing!"

"That house elf always seems to know what you want."

"Yes he does. I don't know how he does it."

"I don't know but this is amazing hot chocolate. So with your schedule, when will I see you?"

"At meals?" Harry says sheepishly.

Viktor sighs. "We'll have to make sure we see each other occasionally."

"I know. You can be there when I'm in the common rooms even if I'm supervising and I have Friday and Sunday evenings free. We'll make it work. Plus once you make the team you'll have Quidditch practice as well."

"True."

"I'm sorry, Harry?" A seventh year prefect asks.

"Yes?"

"This first year kid named Eric from Gryffindor is asking for you."

"I'll go see him. Thank you. Sorry Viktor, I'll go see what he wants and then I need to go key Draco to the wards of his room."

"Don't worry about it, I need to get some sleep anyway," Viktor says, giving Harry a quick kiss.

Harry walks to his room, says hi to Alex who is reading in his bed, and walks into the Gryffindor common room.

"Harry!" Eric yells when he sees him. "I got into Gryffindor!"

"I can see that. Did you have any doubt?" Harry grins. He sees the two first year boys with Eric. "Are these your dorm mates?"

"Yes. This is Josh and that's Eli. They're cool. They also didn't believe I knew you."

"Hmm. Josh, Eli, unfortunately I know this brat. As a prefect I can't condone any of the things I taught Eric over the summer."

Eric laughs. "What things?" 

"Exactly. Go get some sleep boys, you'll need it for tomorrow."

"Goodnight Harry."

Harry walks back to his room and through to the Slytherin common room. The room gets very quiet when he walks in but he ignores it. He puts his hand on Draco's door and lets himself into the room. "Draco, come out here so I can key you to the wards. There's no password, it just responds to your magical signature and only if you are willing. So nobody can force your hand on the door and gain access."

Draco walks out of his room with Harry and Harry quickly keys him to the wards. "Thank you Lord Black, this is very generous. I love the room."

"You are welcome. I need to get back but if you need anything just let me know," Harry says before walking back to his room.

He falls down on his bed as soon as he walks in. "Is it bad that I'm already exhausted and it's the first night?"

Alex laughs. "Probably. Come on, let's get some sleep. You have workouts first thing in the morning."

"True. Goodnight Alex."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Are you nervous Harry?" Severus asks as they walk through the Ministry.

"No. He has no defense. I don't even know why he's trying this."

"Agreed. Here we are, let's take our seats and see what happens."

It's Friday afternoon and Harry, Sirius, Remus, Severus and Kingsley walk into courtroom 10 for the appeal of Dumbledore. They've only been seated a few minutes when Amelia seals the doors and calls the meeting to order.

"We are here for the appeal of Albus Dumbledore due to new evidence being brought to the attention of this court. Mr. Dumbledore, the floor is yours."

"Thank you Madame Bones. I believe I was wrongfully removed from my post as Headmaster of Hogwarts School. I deny all charges against me. I am a light wizard, I would never purposely hurt another wizard. To prove this I'd like to call my familiar, Fawkes. As you all know Fawkes is a phoenix. He would not be a familiar for one who has done dark magic or has dark intentions. Should his wizard turn dark, a phoenix will bond to a new wizard whom he considers light and worthy. Fawkes!"

Harry looks at Sirius in confusion, who just shrugs his shoulder. They had wondered where Fawkes went and had not expected this defense. With the proof against Dumbledore they aren't sure just proving he's supposedly light would be enough to reinstate him, but Harry has the feeling Dumbledore is desperate. He watches Fawkes fly into the courtroom in a flash of flames and circle the room. He's waiting for him to land on Dumbledore's shoulder, indicating Dumbledore is still bonded to him.

To everyone's utmost surprise Fawkes doesn't land on Dumbledore's shoulder, he lands on Harry's. "Hi Fawkes. Why did you come to me?" Harry asks. Fawkes just trills a little and pushes his head against Harry's head.

The entire room has gone silent, and Albus like he's about to explode. Suddenly everyone starts talking and Harry looks at his guardians for help. Severus walks over and sits next to him. "Papa, what's happening?" 

"I think Fawkes just chose you as his new bonded as opposed to staying with Dumbledore. It means that Fawkes realized that Dumbledore has gone dark."

"So what does this mean for the appeal?"

"Silence!" Amelia yells. "You can't argue with a phoenix' choice. They always choose the light wizard and only leave their bonded when he or she has gone dark. All in favor of the appeal being denied?"

All hands go up. "All in favor of reinstatement?"

No hands go up and Harry sighs in relief. "Thanks Fawkes. Now I take it you're my familiar?"

Another soft push into the side of his head confirms that. "Uhhmm dad? Can I have another pet?"

Sirius, who has walked over by now, sighs and shakes his head. "I swear we are going to be a zoo by the time you are of age. You now have three familiars. No more, understood?"

Harry grins. "It's not like I go out and buy them. They just find me."

"Hmm. It's a good thing we have a Manor and lots of land to go with it. Are you ready to go?"

"Yes. This has already wasted my whole afternoon and Dora is waiting for me."

"Why is she waiting for you?" Remus asks.

"She said she has a pile of correspondence that requires my attention. She holds everything for Friday afternoons, but obviously today I've been a little bit delayed."

"Don't overwork yourself Harry," Sirius admonishes. "I've seen how busy you've been all week and you're already buried in homework. Are you sure you haven't taken on too much?"

"I'm sure. I have tomorrow afternoon and Sunday afternoon for homework, I'll be fine. It's not that bad yet. I promise to get help if I become overwhelmed."

"We'll be watching for it Harry," Severus says when they reach the apparition point. They quickly apparate to Hogwarts. "And if any of us notice you stop sleeping or stop eating we'll know you're caving under all the pressure."

"I know. What do you all think of that new professor?"

"We haven't really had much interaction apart from staff meetings," Sirius says.

"He seems knowledgeable," Remus puts in.

"Have you met him yet?" Severus asks.

"Not yet but he keeps looking at me. I'm not sure why. I don't have his class so there's no reason for us to interact."

"I'm sure he's just looking because of who you are," Sirius says. "Now you better go meet Dora, I'm sure you already have a scolding waiting for you for keeping her waiting."

Harry grins and walks to his study, where he listens to a five minute scolding from Dora. "Dora, did you forget you work for me?"

Dora laughs. "I didn't forget but sometimes you need to be reminded of things. Now get to that correspondence if you want to be done before dinner." 

Harry grins and sits down at his desk to go over everything with Dora. They end up deciding on two formal events he needs to attend in the next two months and he writes replies to several letters. He also signs a couple birthday cards for various Lords. It is well after dinner when he finishes and Dora has left a while ago, telling him to have Dobby send the rest of the correspondence if it doesn't fit in the box. He casts a tempus and his eyes grow wide.

Quietly he tries to leave only to meet Severus in the living room. "Papa."

"Do we need to discuss not missing meals?" 

"I'm sorry, I lost track of time. I was about to go have Dobby get me something to eat and then head to the common room."

"Very well. Go eat something and then relax for the evening. No homework, alright?" 

"Wasn't planning on it," Harry smiles. "I'll have plenty of time for it tomorrow and Sunday." Harry gives Severus a quick hug before leaving for the all-house common room where he's hoping to find his friends. They are all there around the fire and Harry sinks down into the couch with a sigh.

"Hi Guys."

"Didn't think we'd see you today," Alex says with a smile. "How did everything go?"

"Pretty good. Hold on, let me order dinner first. Dobby! Could you bring me a plate of whatever was served in the Great Hall?"

"You shouldn't miss meals Harry," Viktor says.

"I know. I lost track of time. The trial was faster than I thought but then I still had to get through all my correspondence. But I'm not skipping, just eating a little later. Papa banned me from homework for the evening so I'm here to relax and hang out."

Dobby pops back in with what looks like grilled chicken, roasted potatoes and asparagus. "That's definitely not what we had in the Great Hall," Alex says with some envy.

"Thanks Dobby, this looks amazing. When I'm done could you bring chocolate cake for dessert?"

"Dobby will do this."

"So what have you all been up to?" Harry asks while digging into his food. He is used to Dobby giving him something he enjoys whenever the Great Hall is serving something Dobby knows he doesn't like or which is particularly greasy. Over the summer he has been starting to eat healthier, knowing it will help with his workouts and he's found he has more energy during the day as well.

"Mostly been hanging out here. Hermione has been trying to get us all to do homework," Viktor grins. "She's been unsuccessful."

"Not surprising," Harry laughs. "Hermione, put that book away. If I can go an evening without studying so can you. How about we declare Friday nights homework free nights and we all do something fun? I think we all need it especially with most of us in our OWL or NEWT year. Yes Hermione, the week before exams can be the exception."

"I think that's a great idea," Neville says. Everyone else chimes in with the same and soon all books are put away. "How about a chess tournament?"

Harry grins and summons one of the chess boards from the side of the room. "Since it's your choice, you get to go first. Who do you pick as your first opponent?"

"You."

"Ahhh a challenge. I like it. Go ahead and set it up. Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"Could you bring us some butterbeer? And I'm ready for my chocolate cake, does anyone else want any?"

Soon they are all eating chocolate cake and drinking butterbeer, watching Harry and Neville play chess.

"I vote next week we have a dueling competition," Viktor says with a grin.

"We'd need a professor to supervise."

"Harry, how about your dad?" 

"I can ask him, but we'll have to do it by year so it's fair across the board. I might ask Professor Flitwick instead since he's a dueling champion. We don't want seventh years dueling third years."

"Fair enough. You ask professor Flitwick. You're terrible at chess by the way," Viktor says, looking back at the board.

"I know, always have been. Papa tried to teach me over the summer but I'm still hopeless."

It doesn't take long for Neville to defeat Harry, and to chose Alex as his next opponent.

Harry sits back with a smile, Viktor's arm around him. He looks around at his friends and can't help but feel content. In moments like these, where they're all simply sitting around the fire and enjoying each others company it's easy to forget that out in the real world a war is starting and a madman has returned to life. Harry is startled out of his musing when he notices the entire common room go silent. He looks up to see what's going on when he sees Draco standing in the doorway, looking uncertain.

Harry can't help but smile, knowing what a big step this is for him, and before he can change his mind he waves him over. "Draco! Come join us. I think Neville needs some real competition."

Draco calmly walks over and looks at them. "What are you doing?"

"Chess tournament. We've declared Friday nights homework free nights, and this is the result. He's crushing all of us but from what I've heard you're a decent chess player."

"You want me to sit with you?"

"Unless you want to sit somewhere else. It doesn't matter to us but you are welcome here. We don't bite, I promise."

"Lord Black," Draco starts.

Harry puts up his hand to stop him. "In here, when I'm with friends, I'm just Harry. If you need to make a formal request address me as Lord Black so I know, but otherwise just call me Harry. Now are you going to give Neville a run for his money now that's defeated Alex or are you going to just stand there?"

Draco looks hesitantly at Neville, who has reset the board and motions for Draco to have a seat. It turns out Harry was right and it is a very intense game of chess. Neville ends up winning, but only barely, and he grins when he does.

"Nice game Draco. We'll have to do that again sometime. It's close to curfew, we should all get to our dorms."

Everyone gathers their belongings and starts making their way back to their dorms. Harry stops at Professor Flitwick's office, hoping the man is still there. "Professor, do you have a minute?"

"Of course Harry, come in."

"We were wondering if it would be alright to have a dueling competition next Friday after dinner? We'd keep it fair by only allowing students to duel those in their own year, but we need a professor to supervise. Since you are a dueling champion I was wondering if you would be willing to supervise."

"Excellent idea! I'd love to supervise. How about the Great Hall? I will put up a notice on all the bulletin boards in the morning. We can probably fit 4 four dueling stages in there so we can have multiple duels. I'm sure other professors would agree to supervise as well."

"Thank you professor."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You'll do great Alex. I'll be cheering for you!" Harry says as they walk to the Quidditch pitch. It's Saturday morning and Harry is walking towards the pitch with Alex. Alex is clearly nervous, despite Harry's reassurance that he'll do fine.

When they get to the pitch, Katie who is the new Captain, calls everyone to order. "Alright everyone! We only need a Chaser and a Keeper this year. Fred, George, as our beaters I want you to make the tryouts harder without injuring anyone. Harry, I will release the snitch so you can get some practice in. One by one you will all be taking a turn flying Chaser with Angelina and I until we determine who would fit the team best. Once we have chosen our Chaser, we will be trying out Keepers. Please be patient. It's not just important that you can fly well, it's also important that you fit well within the team and can work together with others. Any questions?"

When nobody has any she releases the bludgers and the snitch, waiting for Fred, George and Harry to fly up. Soon they are all flying, a different third Chaser every couple minutes. Harry has caught the snitch twice and been hit by a bludger once by the time all the Chasers have had a turn. The bludgers and snitch are put away and the team lands. "Give us a minute to discuss," Katie calls out.

"I think Alex was the best," Angelina said. "Joshua was good as well but he was trying to keep it all to himself the whole time instead of playing as a team. As a result he got hit with a bludger twice. Ginny was good when she tried out last year, but this year she seems very distracted."

"I agree," Fred says. "It was really easy to get him with the bludger when we actually tried. Alex needs a little more practice but he moves fast and dodged the bludger even when aimed straight at him. He would hold up better against a team like the Slytherins. I agree that Ginny was too distracted."

"I'm going to be honest and say that I will resign as Seeker if Ginny is chosen. I can't deal with that on a regular basis. She's been following me around school all week, and I fly to get away from things like that."

"Everyone in favor of Alex?" Katie asks. She's not prepared to lose Harry and she agrees Alex was better than Ginny regardless of that fact. They all nod so she walks back to the group.

"Alex! You are our new Chaser. Joshua! You are reserve Chaser. That means I want you at every practice. Keepers, I will be sending you up one at a time. The Chasers will be trying to score, your job is to block. You each get five tries."

In the end Ron gets chosen as Keeper. Harry agrees he was the best one out there, and since Ron has been trying to avoid him he doesn't think there will be any major problems.

Everyone who didn't get chosen takes to the stands while the team practices until lunch. "Hey Harry, is Viktor trying out for Ravenclaw Seeker?" Katie asks when they walk back to the castle.

"He is, and there's no doubt he'll get it. It will definitely make the games more interesting."

"Yes it will and it means us Chasers have to step it up," Katie says with a smile. "It's good to see some real competition."

"I agree. I'm going to go sit him for lunch. I'll see you all later!"

Harry and Alex both join Viktor at the Ravenclaw table, still wearing their Gryffindor practice uniform. Harry is not in the least surprised when Dobby pops in with a special meal for him.  
"Thanks Dobby."

Alex looks at him in question. "He brings me food whenever the Great Hall serves something I'm not fond of, or if it's greasy. He knows I've been trying to eat healthier and he knows my likes and dislikes."

"What's wrong with roast beef?"

"I like my roast beef fully done, not medium like they serve on the tables. See, mine is roast beef as well it's just cooked well."

"So homework this afternoon?" Viktor asks.

"Yes. Library? I have some things I need to research."

"Sounds good. You joining us Alex?" Viktor asks.

"Absolutely."

"Harry, I hear you got hit with a bludger?" Sirius asks from behind him.

"Hi dad. I did, it's just my side, I'm fine."

"Come get some bruise balm in our quarters before you go to the library. I'm sure it's fine but it will make it heal faster."

"I can do that. I need to get some books from there anyway. I'll go do that now, I really do need to get to homework."

"Shouldn't you change first?" Viktor asks with a grin.

Harry looks down and laughs. "That's probably a good idea. Maybe a shower as well. I'll see you up there."

When Harry gets to their quarters he takes off his uniform and walks into the living room in just his pants to get the bruise balm. "That's more than just a small bruise Harry," Remus scowls while handing him the jar.

"It's fine. Call it an occupational hazard. I'll apply it after my shower."

Harry walks into the bathroom and relishes in the warmth of the shower.

Out in the living room Remus looks at Sirius. "He's certainly more confident and comfortable around us to just walk out here in boxers."

"Did you see those abs Remus? I'd be walking around without a shirt too if I had those," Sirius grins. "I would have killed for those at his age."

Remus laughs. "I have to admit he has gotten fairly muscular over the past couple months. Kingsley said he wasn't wearing a shirt at workouts this morning and a few girls stopped to stare. Should we warn him?"

"We should warn Viktor. He might not appreciate the stares."

"Warn Viktor about what?" Harry asks. "Sirius can you apply some right here? I can't quite reach."

Sirius gets up to help Harry, still grinning. "About the fact that girls are drooling over you when you don't wear a shirt."

"Why would they be doing that? I'm in a relationship."

"That doesn't mean people will stop looking when they see a good looking young man walk by. Harry, you've gotten more confident and on top of that you are in good shape. Girls and boys alike will be attracted to that. You used to walk as if you were trying to hide from the world and you were skinny. Now you are starting to show muscles and you walk with confidence like you are ready to take on the world. People take notice."

"I suppose. I'll pass the message to Viktor," Harry says while spelling a set of everyday robes on himself and summoning his books. "I'll see you all tomorrow morning."

Harry makes his way to the library and sits down next to Viktor. He notices Hermione has also joined them. "Viktor, Sirius said to warn you that apparently I get stared at, especially when I don't wear a shirt during workouts."

"I can't blame them for looking. If they start touching I might be tempted to hex them."

"Good to know. Hermione have you done this Arithmancy project yet?"

"No, I'm starting it now."

"I found this book in Sirius' private library. I think it will help us more than the books I found here in the library."

"I can't seem to find any books," Hermione says with a glare.

Harry waves his hand and three books come flying towards their table. "This is what the library has. I already used those the other day, so you start with those and I'll see if this book is any more useful."

"Uhh Harry? You just did that wandlessly," Hermione says, hesitation in her voice.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. I need to stop doing that. I'd gotten so used to it in the library at Black Manor."

"It seemed so effortless."

"I've had a lot of practice. This book isn't very helpful either," Harry says, glaring at the book. "I can get what we need for the essay to be passing, but I feel like I'm missing something. I'm going to run up and see if there's anything else in dad's private library."

Harry runs out of the library, glad for the excuse to leave. The book was actually fairly helpful, but he didn't want to get into a discussion about his wandless magic. When he walks into the teacher's wing all his guardians are at a desk working on grading. "Hi. What are you all up to?"

"Hi Harry. Grading and lesson plans. Weren't you doing homework?"

"Yes, but I accidentally summoned books wandlessly and it freaked Hermione out a little. I used an excuse to leave for a few minutes so she wouldn't ask further questions. I'd gotten so used to doing that at Black Manor I didn't even notice I did it."

"I see," Sirius says. "So what was your excuse?"

"To look for more books for our Arithmancy project in our library here."

"There are some you might find useful in my study," Severus says. "You're welcome to go look. I remember the projects I had in fifth year, some were really hard to find information."

"Thanks," Harry says before walking to Severus' quarters. He finds two books that might help and walks back out. "Papa, do you want to write your name in these so we know they're yours?"

"It's already in there and I charmed all my books to come back to me if I summon them. It's useful to do periodically to collect all your books back. Madame Pince does the same on library books at the end of the school year to ensure nobody takes any home."

"Alright thanks. I'd better get back."

When Harry walks back into the library he puts the books on the table. "Papa said these might help."

He starts looking through the books and finds them to be very helpful and soon he is immersed in his homework again. When he finished he smiles at it. "That was a lot of work but I'm glad I'm done. Do you want these books Hermione?"

"Yes please. I'm almost done but want to see what's in those. You're not going to explain the wandless magic, are you?"

"No Hermione, I'm not. You know I can do it but I try to hide it to avoid talk or the wrong people finding out."

"I won't say anything. Have you done Runes yet?"

"Yes, I have Transfiguration, Defense, Potions and Charms left. Hi Eric," Harry says with a smile to Eric and his friends who have walked up to their table.

"What are you doing?" Eric asks.

"Homework."

"That's a lot of books," Eric says, slight disgust evident in his voice.

"Yes, you just wait until you get to fifth year. First year is fairly easy, professors don't assign much homework yet. What are you three up to this afternoon?" 

"I was hoping you'd have time to show us around Hogwarts. We keep getting lost."

"Let me finish at least one of these essays and then I'll go with you. Do you three have any homework?" Harry asks.

"We were planning to do it tomorrow."

"Why don't you go to that table over there and do it now, that way it's done and by then I'll be done as well. Don't look like that, it's not the end of the world," Harry grins.

"We don't have our books here," Eric tries.

Harry pulls out his wand and looks at Eric. "What subject?"

"Defense and Potions."

Harry summons Eric's Defense and Potions work and then looks at the other boys. "Want me to get yours?"

They are all three looking at him in shock. "What? It's just a summoning charm. You'll learn it in fourth year."

Josh and Eli both ask for their books as well and soon they are all sitting at a nearby table to do their homework. Hermione and Viktor are grinning at Harry.

"Show off," Viktor says with a laugh.

"That was actually a pretty smart to get them to do their homework," Hermione says with a smile.

Harry is almost done with his Transfiguration homework when Eric comes back to the table. "We're done."

Harry pulls out his wand and wordlessly banishes all their work to their dorms. "It's back on your desks. I have one more paragraph to add to this and then I'm done."

"Show off," Viktor mutters.

Harry grins at him. "You are perfectly capable of a non-verbal banishing charm. Are you joining us on our walk?"

"No, I have too much to do. You have fun."

Harry quickly finishes his essay and banishes his things back to his dorm. He realizes he did it wandlessly and sighs. He really has to stop doing that. He pretends like nothing happened and looks at the three wide eyed boys. "Ready?"

They nod eagerly and soon Harry is showing them all the secret passages and quick ways to get from one place to another. When they run into Professor McGonnagal she raises her eyebrow. "Should I be worried that you are showing these three around the school Harry?"

Harry grins at her while the three students look uncomfortable in front of their Headmistress. "That depends on what you're insinuating about me Headmistress."

"Cheeky," Minerva scolds, but Harry can see the amusement in her eyes. He can also see the other three boys staring at him. "I suppose you've been less trouble this year than years past."

"I agree. Of course the year has barely started. I'm simply showing these young Gryffindors how to get places quickly without getting lost. That may or may not include secret passageways."

"Don't forget you're a prefect."

"These three know I have no problem assigning detention if they are caught using this information after curfew, right boys?"

"Yes," they all three say.

"See? They learn quickly," Harry grins. "Besides, it's not like I'm showing them the secret passages to get to Hogsmeade," he says innocently.

"Mr. Potter!" Minerva scolds. "You show them those and I will take you to your guardians to be dealt with. I think Severus would have a lot to say about that."

"He probably would. We should continue our walk, it was nice talking to you."

Harry does a mock salute and continues walking, three stunned eleven year olds behind him. "Uhm Harry?" 

"Yes Eric?"

"You can talk to a professor like that?"

"No, I don't recommend it. I've known her long enough that she knows I'm joking and not actually being disrespectful. Professor McGonnagal is very nice if you give her a chance, and she'll be there for you guys if you need her. She might look stern but she has a good heart underneath all that."

"Mr. Potter stop ruining my reputation!"

"Sorry professor!" Harry yells back.

They've made it all the way to the dungeons and turn around. "That's pretty much it. I don't recommend coming down here by yourself unless you have class. There are many very nice Slytherins but there are a few who are very territorial and who don't appreciate Gryffindors wandering around down here. Now the last thing I'm going to show you must not be shared with anyone else, alright?"

They all nod, excited to be let in on a secret. Harry leads them to the fruit basket painting that leads to the kitchens. "You tickle the pair," he says seriously before demonstrating. The boys look at him like he's crazy when suddenly the portrait swings open and Harry walks in. When they see it's the kitchens they look excited.

"Hi Dobby. Could we get some tea and biscuits?" Harry asks. To the boys he points towards a table and sits down. "We're not supposed to be in here which is why you can't tell anyone. The elves will help you if you are nice and respectful to them. If you're not, they'll kick you out and tell your Head of House you were here. You will lose points if you get caught here so be careful. Dobby is my personal elf so you won't be able to call him, but usually an elf will approach you to ask what you need when you walk in. They all know Dobby is my elf so they don't do that for me."

Tea and biscuits are put on their table and Harry pours tea for all of them. "Help yourself. I myself am hungry after all that walking. Don't eat too much, it's only an hour until dinner."

They all enjoy their biscuits and tea and talk about random Hogwarts things, which consists mostly of Harry answering questions.

When Sirius and Remus walk into the kitchen Harry tries to act innocent. "I see you've already lead these innocent first years into trouble," Sirius says with a raised eyebrow.

"Everyone important should know where the kitchens are. You knew when you were students."

"True, but now we are professors. And I'm Head of House for those three," Remus says.

"If you close your eyes and we leave, you can pretend we weren't here, right?"

"I don't think so. The key to using the kitchen is not to get caught. One point each from Gryffindor and ten lines from you Harry. Now scatter."

They leave the kitchen and Harry starts laughing when they get to the Entrance Hall. "What's so funny Harry?" Eric asks. "We just lost points!"

"You lost three points total. That's nothing. Ten lines will take me five minutes to do. It shows he wasn't really upset. Come on, we might as well head to the Great Hall as dinner is about to start."

At dinner Harry notices that Arthur Weasley is up at the Head table with Severus, and Harry wonders what he is doing there. He doesn't have to wait long as Arthur comes up to Harry right after dinner. "Harry, we are taking everyone to Gringotts to get tested. I'd like it if you came so you could see the results as well. Severus has agreed to come."

"Oh that's a good idea. Are you leaving now?"

"Yes we are."

"Let me run up to my dorm real quick and change into robes, then I'll be ready to go."

"Pack a change of clothes as well," Severus says. "We're spending the night at Black Manor afterwards."

Harry is surprised by this but doesn't show it. He has a feeling it was planned that way in case the screenings at Gringotts took longer and they wouldn't make it back by curfew. When he walks back down in semi-formal robes he almost runs straight into the new professor. "I apologize Professor, I did not see you there."

"Just because you're a Lord does not mean you can just run down the halls as you please. The next time I see you running inside you'll be in detention."

Harry looks slightly stunned before continuing his walk. He has no idea what that was about, especially since he didn't actually run into him, just almost. And he wasn't running, he was walking fast. He shakes it off and continues his way down until he meets up with Arthur, Fred, George, Ron, Ginny and Severus. They walk to the headmistress office, as she has been kind enough to open her floo for this occasion.

They arrive at Gringotts to find Molly, Charlie, Bill and Healer Thag already waiting for them. "Very well, since everyone is here let's get this done. For confidentiality reasons you will all be in the waiting room with the exception of Lord Potter-Black and Mr. Weasley. Lord Potter-Black is paying for the exams and has received permission from Mr. Weasley to be there, while Mr. Weasley will be in the room as you are all minors and can't be examined alone. Please be patient. Let's start with Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley and then work our way down to the youngest. Lord Prince, would you mind supervising the children out here?"

"Not a problem. Let me know if you need anything."

Harry, Arthur, Molly and Healer Thag walk into the exam room where Arthur sits down on the bed. "Alright, this potion with determine if there are any compulsions placed on you and if so by whom and what they are. Please get comfortable and then take this. You will wake up when it's done diagnosing you."

Harry and Molly wait patiently while Healer Thag looks at the parchment. When Arthur wakes up he shakes his head. "That was an odd feeling. What did you find?" 

"You were under two compulsions. Both placed by Albus Dumbledore, one to ensure loyalty to him and one to not see fault in anything your wife or daughter do. Please take this potion to remove both."

Harry is furious. He had a feeling the Weasleys were under compulsions but hearing it out loud is another thing. "Excuse me," he says softly before leaving the room. Severus sees him and immediately wraps him in a hug. "Bad?" he asks softly.

"Two. Loyalty to Dumbledore and so he wouldn't see fault in anything Molly or Ginny do. I needed a minute before I blew up. I'm alright now, thank you."

Severus nods and lets go, watching Harry go back into the room. Arthur is pacing while Molly is on the table, apparently having already taken the diagnostic potion. She is done quickly and Healer Thag shakes his head. "No compulsions. You may go wait out in the waiting room. Please send in your eldest."

They keep going until all the Weasleys have been tested. Bill, Charlie, Fred and George had the same compulsions as Arthur. Ron and Ginny just had the loyalty to Dumbledore compulsion. Once everyone is cleansed they meet out in the waiting room. "I have filed a report with the Ministry regarding these findings, and they will be added to Albus Dumbledore's file."

"Thank you Healer Thag, I appreciate you seeing us on such short notice," Harry says politely.

"You are welcome Lord Potter-Black. Should you be in need of my services in the future, please let me know."

They all walk back to the Atrium where Arthur turns to Harry. "I'm sorry Harry, and please let me pay you back."

"No, it's fine. I wanted to know as much as you did. With my name you were able to get in much faster and this is as much for my benefit as yours. Let's see how the removal affects everyone and then we can discuss what to do next, alright?"

"Sounds good. Come on everyone, we're going to the Burrow."

Harry and Severus apparate to Black Manor where Harry sinks into the couch and gratefully accepts the cup of tea Dobby hands him. "That wasn't entirely unexpected."

"No, it wasn't. I'm most surprised that Molly didn't have any."

"That actually disappointed me. That means she acted out of her own free will all this time. Even Ron and Ginny didn't have an excuse. Loyalty to Dumbledore would still not make them give me a love potion."

"Agreed. Come on, let's get some sleep. We have plans for breakfast and then we are going back to Hogwarts for your lessons."

"What plans?"

"You're meeting Jamie. He's coming over to cook breakfast for us. Sirius and Remus are joining us as well. Jamie felt bad that you still hadn't had his cooking so he asked if he could."

"That's nice of him. I guess I have a good breakfast to look forward to. I'm taking dreamless sleep so I'll be out until at least 8 in the morning."

"Breakfast is at nine so that's fine."

"Excellent. Night Papa."

AN: Up next: Discussion Harry and the Weasleys, breakfast with Jamie and the Dueling competition.


	47. Chapter 47

AN: Would you all prefer chapter titles as opposed to numbers? Let me know and I might start coming up with chapter titles. With the story becoming as long as it is I don't know if it would make it easier for readers.

Also, I love the nicknames everyone is coming up with for Dumbledore in their reviews. If anyone objects to me using theirs in the story at times, please let me know and I won't. If I remember to do so (and that is my plan) I will give you credit for it.

Last, continuity errors will happen. I have a huge notebook full of notes for each of my stories to help avoid that and keep all the facts straight. However, posting it chapter by chapter like this and not being able to write every day (as this is a hobby and I do have a day job and family) I sometimes miss things when writing. I do have a beta, but sometimes things still slip through. If you notice something, please let me know. If it is major, I will go back and fix it. Otherwise I'll take note and fix it when the full story is done should it not be corrected by then. I appreciate all reviews, and know that I'm not now nor will I ever be a professional writer.

Chapter 47

"Good morning Harry," Sirius says with amusement when Harry walks down the stairs in just pajama pants, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Morning dad."

"We have guests. You sure you don't want to go put on more clothes?" 

Harry looks up and his eyes widen before he runs back up the stairs. On the couch in the living room was a stranger, who he assumes is Jamie. He's horrified to be seen like that. When he is showered, dressed and presentable he walks downstairs again, flushing slightly when he notices Jamie isn't alone.

"Harry, I'd like you to meet Jamie, his wife Jules and their two children, Nora and Jason."

"Nice to meet you all. How old are you?" Harry asks, crouching down in front of the two children.

"I'm five," Nora says proudly. "He is three."

"Well it's very nice to meet you both," Harry says, standing up again. "So someone mentioned breakfast."

Jamie starts laughing and gets up. "I'll go start that. Can't have a teenager go hungry now can we?"

"Harry that was rude. He's as much a guest as he is here to cook," Severus says, scolding lightly.

Harry sighs and walks to the kitchen where Jamie has disappeared. "Jamie? I'm sorry, that was rude. Do you want any help?"

Jamie turns around and smiles. "Don't worry about it Harry. I don't need any help, you can spend some time with your family."

"Well if you need help let me know."

Harry walks back into the living room, ignoring the stern look he gets from Severus. He sits down on the floor in front of the two kids. "So do either of you like dogs?"

Nora nods frantically and Harry looks at Sirius. He rolls his eyes and leaves the room, coming back as Padfoot. Nora squeals and jumps off the couch, running at Padfoot. "This is Padfoot."

Nora immediately starts playing with him but Jason looks hesitant. Harry crouches in front of him. "He's scary looking isn't he?"

Jason nods so Harry smiles. "He's a big softie. How about I hold your hand and we go say hi?"

Harry holds out his hand patiently waiting for Jason to take it. When Jason takes it he holds back his grin. Slowly he walks the little boy over to Padfoot, who is lying on his back and letting Nora rub his belly. Harry shakes his head, trying to hold back his laughter. When Jason gets close he carefully reaches forward and copies what his sister is doing. Harry steps back and watches the two kids playing with Padfoot, who is loving all the attention.

Harry sits down on the couch and Jules looks at him. "Jason has always had a fear of dogs. There must be something about you that he trusted enough to get close to Padfoot."

"I've always found that little children instinctively know who to trust and who to stay away from," Harry says. "In our neighborhood were quite a few small children. They always asked me to play with them on the playground, while they would run as soon as my cousin came nearby."

"They are still innocent. They normally haven't been tainted by life yet."

Harry nods. "Normally," he mumbles. Jules hears him but decides not to comment on it. They continue watching the kids play with Padfoot until Jamie tells them breakfast is ready. Jason immediately runs to Harry and grabs his hand, starting to babble about Padfoot. Nora grabs his other hand and joins in the excitement.

When Harry gets to the table, he finds himself seated between the two and grins. Severus looks at Sirius, who has changed back, and smiles. He leans over and whispers "he's wonderful with kids and really seems to be in his element."

Harry hears him and smiles. "Whenever I'd get away from Dudley and his friends I'd find myself on the playground. There were usually mothers there, watching their children play. I knew I was safe there. I often played with the children while there."

When Jamie puts the food on the table and joins them, Harry grins. "This looks amazing."

On Harry's plate are the best Eggs Benedict he's seen in a long time. On top of a warm muffin he sees spinach, topped with waves of thin sliced ham. Topped with a poached egg and hollandaise sauce it looks mouth watering. In a big bowl on the table is a large fruit salad, and by each of their plates are fruit smoothies. Harry's is strawberry, and he immediately tries it. "This is made from fresh strawberries, isn't it?"

Jamie smiles. "Yes it is. Everything here is made fresh. The bread over there is banana and honey bread. Go ahead everyone. There's more if anyone wants seconds."

Harry starts eating and can't quite control his sounds of approval. "This is amazing. Could you become my own personal chef?"

"I don't think Dobby would approve," Remus grins.

"Dobby is too busy as it is. I'm not joking. I could do with food like this all the time."

"You do realize I own several restaurants?" Jamie asks.

"Yes, but you don't manage them. You have managers. Alright, how about you become my personal chef but only for breakfast and dinner so you have enough time to create new recipes and attend to your restaurants?"

Severus looks slightly shocked. "Harry, are you serious?"

"Look, I was already thinking of getting another elf to help Dobby. He's too busy. Having Jamie would be amazing. He could cook here and Dobby can bring it to me in the Great Hall. You guys can get the food as well. Look, I love the food in the Great Hall but it's often unhealthy and fatty and it's the same every week. I understand it's harder to cook for five hundred at a time, but would you not love fresh foods?"

"I would," Sirius says. "But if you want to do this you need to have Lord Peterson write up a contract and formally present it."

"Jamie, would you even be interested?" Severus asks.

"I would, mostly because I miss actually cooking for people. I have my restaurants which are all managed and I just occasionally stop in when I'm needed. I love creating new recipes but I could do that during the day, and if you don't object you could try out the things I create. Get me a contract and I'll consider."

Harry jumps up and runs from the table, floo calling Lord Peterson. He is promised a contract within the hour. When he gets out of the floo, Severus is waiting there for him and it doesn't take long for him to land a swat on Harry's backside. "That was rude. You could have waited until after the meal. I expect an apology when you get back in there."

"Sorry, I got excited."

"I know, and I won't deny the idea of a good chef in your employe excites me as well. But you have to stop and think about propriety at times. He spend time making an amazing breakfast, and you ran out on it. Go back in, apologize, and then finish your breakfast."

Harry nods and walks back to the dining room. "I'm sorry for running out like that. I got a little too excited. You know about magic, correct?"

"Yes, we all do."

Harry nods and quickly waves his hand over his food. "Good, now I can reheat my food and enjoy the rest of it. Where do you live?"

"Just outside of London."

"Would you be able to get here every day?"

"I'd be getting up early and leaving late, but yes."

"Dobby would do all the cleaning after you're done cooking. Would you consider moving in here?"

"What about Jules, Nora and Jason?"

"They could live here as well. It's safe, and there's a lot of room to play. I think Dora would love having someone else here during the day."

"I could never do that."

"How about living in one of my other houses? I have another, smaller property on the other side of town. You'd be close to home."

"If we accept that, I want you to reduce my pay."

"I'm assuming you want the contract in British Pounds?"

"Yes please."

They are just finishing breakfast when Lord Peterson comes in. "Jamie, I might have to try some of this food if it's so good that Harry rushes over to me to get a contract. I've had your cooking before but it's been a while."

"Why don't you three go to your office Harry, while we move to the living room?" Sirius suggests.

Harry nods and soon he is sitting behind his desk with Lord Peterson standing next to it and Jamie is sitting in front of it. "May I see the contract Lord Peterson?" Harry asks. Upon being handed the contract, he quickly reads through it. "Could you add use of the Potter property down the street to it, no charge for rent?"

Lord Peterson quickly adjusts the contract and Harry nods. "This looks good."

Jamie looks at it and his eyes widen. "You do realize that this is a lot of money, especially since you're providing housing as well?"

"There's a relative security risk to this job, and there's a confidentiality clause. Your children shouldn't be told my last name, and neither you nor your wife can tell anyone you work for me. This is for your safety as well as mine."

"Understood. But this is 55,000 pounds a year. Paid monthly. That's a little above average and that's not counting the living arrangements."

"I am aware," Harry says casually.

Jamie looks at Harry and sees that the playful teenager is gone, and here is the Lord he has heard so much about from his cousin. "Very well. Where do I sign and when do I start?"

"You may start as soon as you get moved. I will have Dobby ensure the house is ready. When you are ready to move, contact Dora and she will show you the house and help you move."

"Please sign right here," Lord Peterson says, pointing at a line. "Harry, you sign right below afterwards."

Once the contract is signed a copy is provided to Jamie and one is filed in Harry's vault. "Let's join the rest of them in the living room."

Harry is attacked by an excited Jason as soon as he walks back into the living room. "Padfoot!"

"You want Padfoot? I think he went for a walk. You'll get to see him again next time, alright?"

Jason looks upset and Harry recognizes the look from when he used to be at the playground and a child was told they had to leave. Before Jason can protest Harry lifts him up in his arms and starts towards the stairs. "I have something better to show you."

Jamie looks at Sirius in question. "Should I be worried that your son just walked off with my son?"

"He'd never hurt him. I think I know where he went. He'll be fine."

Up the stairs Harry is telling Jason about Ella. "Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir,"

"I want you to meet Jason. Jason, this is Dobby. He's an elf."

Harry puts Jason down and Jason walks up to Dobby. He carefully touches him. "He's real?"

"Yes, he's real."

"Ok."

"Dobby, could you get Ella and put her in my room?"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

Dobby pops out and Jason looks with wide eyes to where he was just standing. "Harry?" he holds his arms up, wanting to be picked up again.

"Dobby can go where he wants like that. It's cool isn't it?" Harry says after picking Jason up again.

Jason just nods and Harry walks into his room. "This is my bedroom. Let's sit on the couch and Dobby will be right back with my pet. Tell me Jason, do you like snakes?"

"Mommy say snakes dangerous."

"And she's right. But this snake is very friendly and will not hurt you. Now you should never come near any snake without an adult, alright?"

Dobby pops back in, carrying Ella.

"Bring here here Dobby. **This boy wants to meet you Ella. Be nice and careful, he might be a bit scared.**"

"She's big!"

"Yes she is. You can pet her if you want."

Jason carefully reaches out his hand and pets Ella on top of her head. He grins and leans forward more from where he's sitting on Harry's lap. Right when he does Jamie and Jules come in with Sirius, Remus and Severus. "Jason!"

Jason jerks back, and Harry looks up. "Ella is harmless. She's my pet. She won't hurt anyone."

"She's dangerous," Jules says, grabbing Jason and stepping back.

Harry looks at Jamie, who looks warily at Ella. "She's harmless. I promise."

"I don't like snakes either but Harry is right. Ella is his pet and she is harmless."

As if to prove the point, Ella slithers up Harry's back and around his neck. Seeing that Jules still looks hesitant he calls for Dobby and has him take Ella back to Hogwarts. "Let's go back downstairs. I was trying to show Jason something cool, and he loved Ella. I'm not sure it's a good idea to teach him to fear everything from such a young age. I already told him to not be around snakes without an adult there. I understand he's your son but your reaction is probably going to cause him to fear something that shouldn't be feared."

Harry walks out of the room and down the stairs. Irritated that once against snakes are misunderstood and another child is being taught to fear them, he walks outside and summons his broom.

Jamie startles when a broom flies past his head when they get downstairs and he looks at the others in shock. "Harry is mad. He's probably gone flying to calm his temper," Severus says as if it's the most normal thing in the world.

"Fly?" Jules asks.

"Since you guys will spend time here, you might as well come see," Remus says, motioning for everyone to follow him. When they get outside he points to the sky above the pitch where Harry is flying after a snitch.

"Is he really mad because I wanted to protect my son?" Jules asks.

"He's mad because you didn't trust him to keep your son safe, and because he feels snakes are misunderstood. Ella really would not have hurt Jason and Harry would never put anyone, especially a child, in danger. He occasionally loses his temper, and we've worked on that so he doesn't. However, if he feels that those techniques don't work we've taught him to walk away from the situation and calm down," Severus explains. "When working here you'll find out soon enough that there are times when he's a normal fifteen year old teenager and there are times when he is the Lord he is expected to be. This is the teenage response."

"Do his food preferences change based on that?" Jamie asks.

"No, it doesn't," Sirius says with a light chuckle. "He will apologize for leaving when he comes back down, but it won't hurt to apologize in return. We all understand being protective, but if Jason is going to spend time around here you need to trust us to keep your son safe. We would never allow anything in this house that could endanger our son."

Jules sighs. "I know that. You're good parents, I can see that. I've never liked snakes but I think he had a good point that my fear might carry over to Jason and that's the last thing I want. I will keep in mind that you want to keep your son safe as much as I want to keep mine safe."

They all head back inside and Dobby serves tea. When Harry comes in half an hour later he heads upstairs. He returns twenty minutes later, clearly having just come out of the shower, wearing full wizarding robes. Severus holds back his smile. It's clear which Harry has come down the stairs.

"I apologize for leaving. I have work that needs to be done, I hope you'll excuse me. Jamie, breakfast was excellent. I look forward to many more meals. Jason, Nora, I'll see you two soon. Don't give your parents too much trouble, alright? Good day ma'am," he says to Jules.

Harry walks into his office and shuts the door, leaving Jules looking stumped.

"That was Lord Harry," Severus says. "He'll be fine next time you see him."

Jamie sees the look on Severus' face and smiles slightly. "Don't be too hard on him. We need to take our leave anyway and start packing. We will see you all soon."

"I'll be as hard as I need to be to get through his stubborn head. Breakfast was great, I look forward to many more," Severus says with a smile.

Once they have all taken their leave Severus walks into Harry's office without knocking.

"Ever heard of knocking," Harry says, not looking up from his book.

Severus cuffs him on the back of the head and takes the book from him. "Watch it. Would you like to explain why Lord Harry came down the stairs and not just Harry?"

"They obviously don't trust me around their kids so I figured it was best."

"Harry, she loves her son. She is afraid of snakes just like many others, and she reacted. If we saw you in danger or what we perceived as danger we would react before thinking as well. It has nothing to do with her not trusting you. She barely knows you, you can't expect her to trust you blindly."

"I know that."

"Then what's with the reaction?"

"I'm not sure. I overreacted."

"Yes you did. I expect a nice apology letter to Jamie and Jules by tomorrow."

"Fine. We going back to Hogwarts now?"

"Yes we are. Come on, it's time for your lessons."

Harry follows Severus to the living room where Sirius and Remus are waiting for them. "Can we practice dueling today?"

"No," Sirius says. "We're going to go over protocols. Especially those pertaining to entertaining guests in your own home."

Harry glares at his dad. "Oh come on, I wasn't that bad!"

"You might not think so, but I beg to differ. Either way we are going to be reviewing those. Come on, let's head back."

Harry is bored out of his mind all afternoon. They are repeating lessons he's already done before, but he knows he was rude as it was his house they were at. When it's time for dinner he's ready to pull his hair out. "Are we done yet dad?"

"Do you think you'll remember this next time?"

"Yes dad. I promise."

"Hmm. Very well. Go to dinner."

"Thank you!" Harry runs out of the quarters and down to the Great Hall. Along the way he is stopped by Draco.

"Lord Potter-Black, do you have a moment?"

Realizing Draco is not ask Harry, he is asking his Lord, Harry draws a blank mask. "I do Draco. Let's go into this classroom so we have some privacy." Once inside Harry casts strong wards before calling the family magic.

"What can I help you with?"

"This is hard for me to talk about. I'm struggling with accepting that my father would betray me the way he did. I don't understand. And then my mother. They were always there for me. I'm not sure what to do."

"It's good that you bring it up. Remember when I said I would arrange for a mind healer for you to talk to? It has taken some time to find someone we can trust, but I have found someone. Your first appointment is Sunday right after breakfast. You will be using the private room in the infirmary."

"Thank you Lord Black. It would be really helpful to talk to someone."

"Is there anything else I can help with?"

"No Lord Black. Thank you for your assistance."

Harry nods and removes the family magic and wards on the room. "Let's get to dinner. Sunday dinners are always the best of the week."

Harry and Draco walk to the Great Hall and go their separate ways. Harry joins Viktor, Luna and Alex at the Ravenclaw table. "Hi all. How was your day?"

"I spend it doing homework and studying," Viktor says. "How was yours?"

"Started good. Hired a personal chef. Ended with incredibly boring protocol lessons because I was rude to our guests at Black Manor this morning."

Alex grimaces. "I remember those. I was once rude to guests at the Palace. They had brought their son who was my age, and he was a bully. I wasn't going to just accept it and stay polite. I spent the next day in lessons about proper mannerisms."

Viktor laughs. "My dad just took me over his knee and told me I was rude."

Harry laughs. "Somehow I can't imagine your dad doing that."

"That's because he's a big teddy bear, but he's strict when need be. He's a lot like your papa. So are you all participating in the dueling competition Friday?"

"I am," Luna says with a smile. "You going to be practicing Harry?"

"Yes. Before dinner tomorrow."

"May I join?"

"You may. Alex, Viktor, you may join as well. I'll get some others to join as well. Meet me by the Barnabas portrait on the Seventh Floor after the last class of the day."

Monday passes fairly slowly for Harry. He has noticed increasing stares and students pointing at his robes, but he's unsure what that's all about. When he sits down with Hermione for lunch, he decides to ask. "Do you know why people are staring and pointing at my robes?"

"From what I've overheard people have made the connection between the Prince crest on your robes and the one on Lord Prince's robes. Most who aren't an Heir didn't know about it because the article in the Prophet was so small."

"It's quite annoying to be honest. Some have actually purposely bumped into me to get a closer look."

"Maybe an announcement needs made?"

Harry nods before getting up and walking to the Head table. "Papa? Apparently there's a lot of rumors going around regarding the Prince crest on my robes. Should we announce something? I haven't heard them all but knowing the rumor mill at Hogwarts I'm sure some of them are outlandish."

"I've heard some and most are unfavorable towards me. I'll announce something."

Harry walks back and sits down at the table, continuing his lunch. Halfway through lunch, when every student is in the Great Hall, Severus stands up. "Students, may I have your attention please. I know many of you have noticed that the Prince crest on my robes is the same as the Prince crest on Lord Potter-Black's robes. For those of you who have read the Daily Prophet, including the smaller articles, you would know why that is. For those of you who haven't and who have seen fit to spread rumors, let me inform you. Lord Potter-Black is my son, and therefore he is Heir Prince. Yes, you heard me correctly. Before you get the wrong idea, he became my son earlier this summer when I blood adopted him. If you don't know what that is, you all know where the library is. Yes he is still Professor Black's son as well. Thank you."

All eyes are on Harry for a minute before whispers start back up in the Hall. Soon attention is turned away from them, for which Harry is grateful. He gives his fathers a smile before leaving with his friends for his next class.

That afternoon finds Harry in the Room of Requirement with Neville, Luna, Hermione, Cedric, Viktor and Alex. "Those are dueling dummies. I've asked the room to create shields around them so stray spells won't hit anyone else and we can all practice dueling or any other spells we want to learn. I figured we can help each other," Harry says with a smile.

"This would be excellent to do regularly," Neville says. "There are several others who would love to join, and it would also be a great way to get to know other Heirs and form alliances."

"True, but it has to remain secret. If professors find out we might get in trouble since technically we aren't supposed to practice unsupervised."

"We'll just have to be careful who to invite," Hermione ads. "I say at least Hannah Abbott, Susan Bones, Eric and Ernie MacMillan should be invited. They are the Heirs we are friendly with. We can include more as the group grows. How about we meet here every Monday before dinner?"

Harry nods. "That's actually a good idea. I will approach all of them and ensure they know to keep it secret. Let's do some practicing."

Soon everyone is practicing various spells. Whenever someone needs help, one of the others helps them and they all find themselves learning. When they walk down to dinner an hour and a half later they are all smiling and excited.

Harry spends most of Tuesday talking to others about the secret practice group they have formed and they all agree to come. He also invites Fred and George, knowing they'd be good additions. Fred and George ask if Lee can join, and soon Lee, Katie and Angelina join as well. Everyone is excited and everyone agrees to keep it secret, not wanting to ruin something that would be helpful to all of them.

Wednesday afternoon after lunch Harry is running to Ancient Runes. He's running late because he had stopped to talk to Fred and George and really doesn't want to get in trouble. He's almost to the classroom when he hears his name called, and to his horror it's Professor Layden.

"Mr Potter-Black, I believe I've warned you about running before. Detention, after dinner, my office."

"I'm sorry sir, I have common room supervision tonight after dinner. Would it be possible to do tomorrow?"

"No, find someone to trade with. I expect you in my office after dinner."

"Yes sir."

Harry is fuming when he gets to class. He thinks hard, and knowing Helena is the 6th year Ravenclaw prefect he sends a note to her asking if she can cover for him. He's happy when he gets a note after class that she agrees to cover for him. He's annoyed the professor is making him skip his responsibilities as prefect and promises to get Helena something as a thank you.

When Harry gets to detention he is asked to sit down. "You will be writing lines. Here is a quill, the line is at the top of the page. Maybe some writing will get you to obey the rules."

Harry looks at the quill and then at the parchment. He doesn't see ink but assumes the quill is a self-inking one. As soon as he writes the first word, he realizes he's wrong.

"Sir, this is a blood quill."

"I want the message to sink in. Keep writing."

"Sir, this is illegal outside of Gringotts."

"I have permission from the Minister of Magic. Keep. writing."

Harry puts the quill down, casts a wandless shield around himself and runs out of the office. He runs straight to the Headmistress' office, feeling several spells hitting his shield, and runs in without knocking. She is in conversation with none other than Amelia Bones. "Mr Potter-Black what is the meaning of this!"

Professor Layden has made it to the office as well and is panting. "He refused to do detention Headmistress."

"Mr Potter-Black, care to explain?"

"He was trying to get me to write with a blood quill. I refused, cast a shield around myself and ran up here. I felt several spells hit my shield so I know he tried to stop me. Look, the proof is still on my hand." Harry shows his hand to Amelia and Minerva who both immediately petrify the professor and bind him.

"I'll call for Aurors," Amelia says.

"I'll call your fathers," Minerva says.

Soon Harry is telling the full story to Sirius, Remus, Severus, Minerva, Filius as his Head of House, Lord Peterson and the Aurors. When he is done, the Aurors formally charge the professor with assault on a Confirmed Lord and use of an illegal artifact. He is taken to the Ministry, where Amelia is planning to immediately interrogate the Minister under Veritasserum as well.

"Harry, we'll need to go to Gringotts to get that scar removed. Because they are the only ones allowed to use blood quills, they are the only ones who have the potions to remove the scar it leaves. We can either do that tonight or tomorrow night," Severus says.

"Let's just go and get it over with. Can I have a normal, quiet week after this?"

Harry, Severus, Sirius and Remus leave for Gringotts while Lord Peterson heads to his office to write the press release regarding the incident. Minerva meanwhile walks down to Hagrid's to see if he can resume teaching.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Lord Potter-Black, now that I've removed the scar there is something I'd like to discuss," Ragnok says. "I've looked into the Slytherin line, as there was nobody listed as Heir or Lord. It appears that Magic was confused when Voldemort didn't die but disappeared. However. After testing it extensively, we have found that my magic and by law, you can claim the Slytherin Lordship. You gained the title by right of conquest, by defeating him from his corporeal body when you were a baby. Also, because he used your blood to regain a body, he no longer has Slytherin blood in him. He can't claim any titles because it'd be line theft and he'd lose his magic, but you can claim the Slytherin Title because of that. While his soul still exists, now that he has regained a body that is not his own he officially no longer exists as Slytherin Heir. There are no vaults associated with this line, they've been cleared out decades ago, but it would give you the title and the Wizengamot seat."

"I'd like to claim it, if for no other reason than to get another Wizengamot vote."

"Very well. Give me a moment to get the Lordship ring."

The second Harry puts on the Lordship ring he feels the magic of the ring and it joins the others on his hand.

"Congratulations Lord Potter-Black. It will be in the paper in the morning, you should inform Lord Peterson. He might be able to put the announcement in the press release so it's known how you received the title."

"I'll do that right away. I'd also like to name Remus as my proxy. Now you all have two votes each," Harry grins. When Harry looks down at his robes he sighs. The robes are spelled to automatically show the crests that belong to him, and he sees that the Slytherin one is already added. "Well, I suppose it will be obvious. I'm going to write a note to Lord Peterson real quick and then I want to collapse in bed. Can we stop at Honeydukes? I want to get something for Helena for covering Common Room supervision for me."

Sirius nods and pulls him into a hug. "Congratulations pup, but can we stop with all the excitement?"

"Yes please," Harry mumbles.

Soon the note to Lord Peterson is written and sent off with Dobby, they've stopped at Honeydukes and are back at Hogwarts. Severus leaves to inform Minerva and Filius while Harry walks to the Ravenclaw common room. As soon as he walks in he walks to where Helena is and hands her the mixed bag of Honeydukes chocolate. "Thank you for covering for me."

"You're welcome. It was no problem, I was going to be here anyway. How was detention?"

"It lasted five minutes if that. You'll all hear about it in the morning anyway but he tried to use a Blood Quill on me."

He hears the collective gasps around them and sees the concern in Helena's eyes. "Don't worry, I'm fine. It involved Aurors and then a trip to Gringotts to get the scar removed so it all took a while. I'm going to bed, but thank you."

"Thank you for the chocolate. I love Honeydukes."

Harry smiles at her and walks into his room. He knows he should have looked for Viktor and told him what happened, but all he wants to do is curl up in bed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Why didn't you tell me?" Viktor asks the following morning after the announcement is made. Harry can hear the slight hurt in his voice.

"You weren't in the Common Room when I got back, and I was exhausted. I collapsed in bed and went to sleep. I just wanted to pretend nothing happened."

Viktor sighs. "I don't like finding out from the Headmistress and the Prophet."

"I know. I'm sorry. I was just tired of it all last night, but I should have come and found you before going to bed. Right now I hate all the stares, so I'm going to class. Really, I'm sorry."

Harry gets up and leaves the Great Hall, quickly followed by Neville who wants to make sure he's alright.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Welcome Students!" the tiny Charms professor says loudly. "Today is the first dueling competition Hogwarts has seen in many years! As you can see, there are seven platforms, one for each year. Each platform is supervised by a professor. The rules are simple. We have divided you into pairs randomly. You will take turns dueling. The winners will then be paired together. At the end, we will have one winner for each year. Nothing to seriously injury or kill, nothing illegal. If you use any of that a trip to the Headmistress' office will be the least of your problems. Please move to the designated platforms, they are in order from first years over on the far right, seventh years on the far left. Mr Potter-Black you are with the seventh years."

Everyone moves to their respective platforms, and soon they are paired up. Harry has to duel a seventh year Slytherin in his first duel and they are the first ones up. Severus is supervising his platform, and Harry is grateful for it. Protective shields protect the students on the sides, and soon there are duels on each platform.

The Slytherin Harry is dueling keeps sending the same spells at Harry, and Harry is finding it predictable. It doesn't take him long to discern the pattern between stupefies, cutting and stinging hexes, and soon he gets in an incarcerous followed by petrificus quickly. With the Slytherin down, Severus declares Harry the winner and he gets off the stage. He looks over and sees Alex dueling Ron. He grins when he sees that Alex is winning. Over by the fourth years Dudley is dueling a Hufflepuff he doesn't know, but it's obvious Dudley is losing his duel.

Harry turns back to the seventh years, and watches the duels with entertainment. It's clear they all have their own style, but he's amazing how predictable they all are. He vows to mention it to Kingsley first chance he gets, which turns out to be faster than he thinks. "Harry. Notice anything?"

"They are all predictable."

"I noticed that as well. There are some who aren't, but most are. I suppose I need to work on that in my classes. I'm assuming you won yours?"

"Yes. What are the first years doing? They barely know a disarm."

"Disarming and basic shields. For them it's more practice than anything else."

Harry suddenly gets an idea and walks to Severus as soon as the duel is over. In a whisper he asks "are we allowed to use muggle techniques?"

"Yes, it wasn't mentioned as not allowed. We actually want to see who thinks of it."

Harry has two more duels before he is in the duel for the winning spot against Katie, which is not a surprise to him. He smiles at her. All the other years are already done, and to Harry's delight Neville won the fifth years and Luna the fourth years. Harry had seen them both duel at one point and was happy to see how well they were doing. Neville had definitely gained a lot of confidence over the past year. The seventh year duels apparently took the longest and now the whole school is watching them.

The duel starts light, with both of them testing the other. Soon it gets stronger and when Harry realizes that Katie is one of the few who is not predictable he changes his approach. They have both been casting nonverbally, but suddenly Harry casts his Patronus, slides forward to kick her feet out from under her in the second she's distracted and then casts a wandless petrificus with a quick incarcerous using his wand.

The Hall erupts in applause while Harry frees Katie and helps her stand. "Well done Harry. I was not expecting the Patronus or the tackle."

Harry grins. "That was the point. Good duel Katie, I enjoyed that."

The elves provide Hot Chocolate and biscuits for everyone and soon everyone is mingling and talking about the dueling competition. It is decided to have one every year from now on, as it was a great success and there wasn't a single student who didn't participate. Harry enjoys the time with his friends, and even talks to some people he's never really talked to before. He notices the professors mingling as well and thinks they should have more full school things like this.

Before Harry can leave for his dorm, Severus approaches him. "Harry, I just received a note from Arthur asking to reschedule our meeting for next week. Something came up at work and he has to work tomorrow."

"That's fine."

"Dora says you really need to visit some of your other properties and ensure there are enough elves to take care of them. It would also be good for you to see them. She suggests starting with Potter Manor. We would like to do that tomorrow afternoon."

"That's a good idea. I'd love to see my other houses. I'll meet you in the Entrance Hall after lunch."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"Potter Manor is just as grand as Black Manor," Harry says, looking up at the large Manor in front of him.

"Yes it is," Sirius says. "I've never been here, but this is where James grew up. He talked about it a lot. Actually, there might be portraits here of your great-grandparents. He said they would always scold him when he caused trouble. I had forgotten about that."

Harry grins. "That would be great if I could meet family. Let's go see."

As soon as they walk in they are met by two house elves, who introduce themselves as Trixie and Pixie.

"Nice to meet you both. Would you mind showing me around?"

Trixie is assigned to show them around, and Harry notices the layout is very similar to Black Manor. When they get to the library, Harry grins. "I could have so much fun here!"

"Sirius, you didn't raise a bookworm did you?" he hears behind him.

Harry whirls around and his mouth drops open. There, in a huge portrait above the fireplace, are his parents.

"James! I didn't know you had a portrait made!" Sirius says, tears in his eyes.

"We had it made after we went into hiding. We felt it might be needed. Elves can't apparate out of or into the Manor without the Lord's permission so we could never get word to any of you because Harry never visited. What happened?"

"I wish I'd known. Let me tell you what happened over the years. Lily, it's good to see you. Mr and Mrs Potter, I can't believe you are here as well," Sirius says to the other portrait on the wall, which is of James' parents.

Harry has tears running down his face, and Severus puts his arm around him before pulling him into a hug and holding him. "Snivelus, why are you holding my son?"

"James, call him Severus," Remus scolds. "We will explain the full story but know Harry considers him a father."

"Harry, those are your grandparents," Sirius says softly. Harry looks up and smiles softly at the portraits. "Sit down everyone while I tell the story."

Everyone sits down and soon they have tea and biscuits while Sirius explains everything. When he is done, all four adults in the portraits look at Harry with pride.

"Harry, I'm proud of you," Lily says. "And I'm happy you've found family."

"I wish I could take you all with me," Harry says.

"You can," Sirius says. "We can create a portrait in my quarters at Hogwarts and at Black Manor, and then you can spell these portraits so they can move between the various locations. That way they can always be where you are and you can get to know your parents and grandparents. Keep in mind though, that your grandfather is strict and portraits are just as good at scolding as real people."

James laughs. "And so are your mother and I. But we will also tell you about us and you can talk to us about anything. I know it's not the same, but it's better than nothing."

"So how do I do this?" Harry asks.

"I'll go create the portraits. I'll be back," Severus says.

It takes a good half hour, and in that time James and Lily ask Harry about several adventures Sirius had mentioned in his story. When he mentions the flying car he notices that James looks proud while Lily is glaring at him. "Young man that was very irresponsible."

"And such a Marauder thing to do," James grins.

"While your father might be proud, your backside would have met the wrong end of the paddle for that stunt."

"I remember James flying his broom over to Remus' one summer," Mr Potter says with a grin. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

Harry looks at his grandfather curiously and Mr Potter starts telling the story. By the end, Harry is in stitches, and Sirius, Remus and James are grinning while remember that particular adventure.

"Alright son, it's done. Let me show you the spell to use," Severus says as soon as he gets back.

It doesn't take long and soon Harry sees them all disappear and come back a minute later.

"It worked. So where are they in the other houses?"

"In the living room above the fireplace in both locations. They also have one in your office in Black Manor."

"Thanks papa," Harry says with a smile. "We really ought to finish seeing this place and then head back to either Black Manor or Hogwarts. We'll have to do the other properties next week, there's not enough time left today."

"Let's go to Black Manor. We can spend the night there," Sirius suggests.

Everyone agrees and soon they are in Black Manor. "Harry, while you are here there is some correspondence you should take care of since you didn't yesterday. I know you were preparing for the dueling competition yesterday, but if you're here might as well get these RSVP's out."

"Put them on my desk I'll be right there."

Harry walks up to his room to put on comfortable sweatpants and a tshirt and soon finds himself reading the letters. "Dora?"

"Yes Harry?"

"Andromeda has requested a meeting as soon as possible. Could you firecall her and see if she's available this evening?"

Dora leaves and soon returns. "She said she'll be here in thirty minutes."

His parents and grandparents are all in his office with him, watching him work. When Harry waves his hand and is suddenly dressed in full formal robes, he hears them gasp. He looks up from the letter he is reading. "What?"

"Wandless and nonverbal?" James asks.

"Oh. Yeah, I can do that."

"That's impressive."

"I suppose."

Dobby pops in and announces Andromeda has arrived. Harry casts privacy spells over his desk and stands up.

"Lord Black, thank you for taking the time to see me."

"You're welcome Andromeda. I'd like you to meet my parents and grandparents. Would you prefer if they left?" Harry asks, gesturing towards the portraits.

Andromeda stares at the portraits for a second before answering. "They may stay as long as they keep the secrecy of the meeting Lord Black."

"Would you like me to invoke family magic? It would cover any portraits in the room."

"Yes please. Thank you Lord Black."

Harry quickly invokes family magic and sits back down. "How may I help you?"

"We received a letter from Headmistress McGonnagal today. It appears Draco has missed several classes this week. We know you allowing him more freedom had the condition that you would discuss any misbehavior with him personally. Also, it appears he was quite rude to the Headmistress when she informed him a letter would be send. He then hexed a Hufflepuff third year for getting in his way earlier this morning."

Harry sighs. "I was wondering how long the good behavior would last. I'll talk to him."

"Thank you Lord Black. We are thankful you have taken him under protection of House Black but I think he's testing to see how far he can go now that he's back at school. Ted is already there to deal with him as parent."

"I'll be back at Hogwarts tomorrow and meet with him. Do you mind me asking what his punishment is? I want to help ensure he follows it."

"Headmistress McGonnagal assigned a month detention with Professor Sinistra, Ted will be spanking him."

"Very well. I'll ensure he goes to his detentions. It would look bad on me as Lord Black if this escalates further. Thank you for bringing it to my attention."

"Certainly Lord Black."

"Is there anything else I may assist you with?"

"No, that would be all Lord Black."

Harry nods and cancels the family magic. "Tea?" 

"No, I should get back and see if Ted is home. Thank you."

They say their goodbyes and Harry changes his clothes back to sweats. He finished the last two letters, not even noticing when his parents and grandparents leave their portraits.

"Is he always like that?" James asks in the living room.

"What are you talking about?" Sirius asks.

"He went from teenager reading letters to full blown Lord and back to teenager."

"Oh. Yes. It's impressive, isn't it?"

"If I didn't know his age I would never guess him at fifteen when he was in Lord mode," Lily says.

"Hey dad?" Harry asks while walking into the living room. Both James and Sirius answer and he stops.

"Alright, that will get really confusing. James, you're father from now on. Sirius is dad. Severus is papa. Dad, can the portrait be removed and taken outside?"

"I suppose it could. Why?"

"I want them to see me fly," Harry grins.

"It's still light for a little while. Want to do that now?"

"Yes please."

Sirius takes James and Lily while Remus takes Mr and Mrs Potter and levitate them in front of them. Soon they are outside and Harry summons his broom before flying up into the sky quickly. He releases the practice snitch and chases after it.

When Harry lands half an hour later, triumphantly holding the snitch, he grins. "He definitely has my talent," James says with a big smile.

"Little daredevil. He was scary on his toddler broom, we should have expected this," Lily says with a smile.

They all walk back inside, and the rest of the evening is spent with the Marauders sharing stories of their Hogwarts days. They avoid stories that involve Severus, and even Severus laughs at most stories. Mr and Mrs Potter also fill them in with stories of when James was younger, and Severus and Lily share stories from before Hogwarts. When Harry falls asleep with his feet on Remus' lap and his head on Sirius' they all look at him fondly.

"Thank you Sirius, Remus, Severus," James says. "For taking care of my boy. He's clearly loved and that's all we could ever ask for."

The three smile at each other. "He was a misbehaving brat before, but some love and structure has really helped him become the wonderful young man he is today. Wait until you meet his boyfriend, he is really good for Harry."

"We will determine that," Mr Potter says sternly.

Sirius laughs. "I don't doubt you will. Just don't scare him off. Keep in mind he already has three fathers to content with, a former Head Auror and a formidable Headmistress. On top of that Harry is an honorary Weasley which provides him with four very protective older brothers in Fred, George, Charlie and Bill."

Lily laughs. "Poor boy. At least all I had was Mr Potter since I already had your approval. I will ensure they behave."

Severus stands up and picks Harry up in his arms. "I'm taking him to bed. Goodnight everyone."

AN: Hope you enjoyed the new introductions to the story! For those who are worried, Harry will be good for Draco.


	48. Meeting the Parents

AN: Story will be switched to past tense. I will update Ch. 1-47 as well, but it takes time as that's already 279,000 words. Just a heads up if you notice the change in tenses.

Chapter 48: Meeting the Parents

It was towards the end of lunch when Harry went in search of Draco. He was not looking forward to the discussion they were about to have. He was wearing full formal robes to indicate he was Lord Black, not Harry, and when he walked into the Great Hall everyone got very silent. Many had never seen him like this, and were openly staring.

After a quick glance at the Headmistress, who he could tell knew that he had been told, he strode towards the Slytherin table. "Mr. Malfoy, please follow me."

If at all possible Draco had paled significantly before getting up out of his seat and following his Lord out of the Hall. Harry found an empty classroom and quickly warded the room before turned to Draco. "Would you care to explain?"

"I apologize Lord Black."

"That's not what I asked. I want an explanation as to why you skipped class, were rude to the Headmistress and hexed an innocent student."

When Draco didn't answer Harry turned him and gave him a sharp swat on his backside. "When I ask you a question, I expect an answer," he said sternly. He wasn't sure where this was coming from, but it felt natural.

"I'm sorry Lord Black. I don't have an excuse for any of it. I was frustrated when the Headmistress called me out on missing class, which I had no excuse for. The Hufflepuff was in the wrong place at the wrong time and I should not have taken my anger out on him."

"Do you have anything else to say about this?"

"No sir."

"Very well. I know you have detention and I know Ted spanked you. I am grounding you to your room for a week. You are not to leave except for classes, detention and meals. From now until further notice I will check in on you just before curfew to ensure you have attended all classes and done all homework. This will also be an opportunity for you to talk to me in private about anything you want to talk about. You will be meeting with the mind healer twice a week, you should have been sent a schedule of appointments. I will inform all your professors at the staff meeting this afternoon that I want weekly progress reports which will include all grades and include a report on behavior. Any misbehavior will be disciplined. If you ever hex another student again, and it was not in self defense, you will be in more trouble than you care to be in. Is that understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Very well. You may return to your room. If you need me for any reason, call Dobby and give him a message."

Harry walked Draco back to the Slytherin dorms before making his way up to the staff room where he knew a staff meeting was about to start. He walked in, right as Minerva was starting. "I apologize for interrupting Headmistress. Could I address the staff for a moment?"

"Certainly Lord Black."

"I have no doubt you have all been informed that Draco Malfoy falls under the protection of House Black. To ensure his safety and well being, I would like to request a weekly progress report from each of his professors which outlines all grades from that week, average grade in the class, any classes missed or tardiness and general behavior and participation during class. I will be meeting with Mr. Malfoy daily, and would like to ensure he is doing well both in and out of class. Should any of you have any concerns, please share them with me so they may be addressed instead of letting them escalade."

"That is a lot of extra work for us," Professor Vector said.

"I fully understand, and if you are unable to do this I understand that as well. I ask that in that case you simply inform me if there is a problem so that it may be addressed. I would also like to remind everyone that he is not his father. He is trying to change, but he will need guidance while doing so."

"I will get you a progress report every Friday," Professor Flitwick said. "I am happy someone is taking an interest in Mr. Malfoy's life and helping him stay away from the Dark. You have the potential to be a strong, positive influence in his life and I admire the fact that you have put aside your animosity towards Mr. Malfoy to do just that."

"Thank you Professor," Harry said, his face still blank. Soon most professors have agreed to regular progress reports on Fridays and Harry nodded. "Thank you for your time. I will leave you to your meeting."

He walked to Sirius' quarters and fell down on the couch. "How did it go?" James asked from the portrait.

"As well as can be expected. I will be meeting with him every day before curfew, all his professors will give me a weekly progress report on Fridays and he is meeting with a mind healer twice a week. I think he just needs a steady influence in his life, someone who won't run at the first sign of trouble."

"Did you punish him?" Mr Potter asked.

"He's grounded to his room for a week."

"That's remarkably fair. If that had been you and I was there you would have been grounded much longer," Lily said with a smile.

"He already has detention and he got spanked by his guardian. I'd say he's been punished enough."

"You should have seen your son, James. He was amazing, with a commanding presence when he stood before the entire staff to request progress reports," Sirius said when he walked in. "Everyone saw Lord Black, nobody saw Harry the student."

"You're back early," Harry said.

"There wasn't much to discuss. After you left I requested weekly progress reports for you as well, and then Minerva only had one item on the agenda."

"Why reports on me? You know everything that happens."

"We don't know about all your classes. I have to admit it was a good idea. Thank you."

Harry looked slightly disgruntled but is quickly distracted by Mr Potter. "Harry, we still don't know everything about your first four years of Hogwarts. We were told the general stories but I'd love to hear more."

"I have homework to do. Maybe some other time," Harry said before quickly getting up.

"Hold it young man!" James said loudly. "If I didn't know better I'd say you are avoiding the topic."

"That's because I am."

"Harry, we'd really like to know."

"You can't punish me, right?" Harry asked.

"Unfortunately, no we can't," Mr Potter said.

"If I tell you, could you keep in mind that I've already been lectured and been forced to discuss what I could have done instead. I know most of it was stupid and dangerous."

"We promise not to lecture," Lilly said calmly, giving James and Mr Potter a stern look. "We also know you now have guardians who will ensure there are no repeats."

Harry sighed and ordered tea before sitting back down. He started telling his parents and grandparents everything that happened in his first couple years at Hogwarts. He could tell they were struggling not to scold him or yell at him.

When he finished a good hour later, there was complete silence. Harry looked uncomfortable and it was clear he was expecting a scolding.

"Well," Mr Potter said ten minutes later. "It's good I'm dead. If I wasn't, you'd be feeling my paddle right about now."

"If we were alive he would have felt the paddle after his encounter with the troll. The others would not have happened," Lilly said sternly. "Go get your fathers please."

Harry quickly got up, glad to be out of the room, and got Sirius, Remus and Severus. Mr Potter gave them a stern look. "I expect you to deal with his misbehavior, and from now on, if he finds himself in dangerous situations like the past few years I will assume you need help parenting. He's a magnet for trouble but it will stop. Any grandson of mine will learn how to behave properly and befitting of House Potter."

"My little boy should not be on the verge of death every single year. Is that understood?" Lily asked.

Harry almost burst out laughing at hearing his fathers get scolded, especially when they quickly nod and 'yes ma'am' his mother.

"Good, glad that's settled," Mrs Potter says cheerfully. "Now when do we get to meet his young man you're courting?"

"Uhh, I'll see when he's free," Harry said hesitantly.

"How about after dinner tomorrow?"

"I have All-House Common Room supervision duty tomorrow."

"Tuesday?"

"Extra Defense lessons. Wednesday I have Ravenclaw Common Room supervision duty, Thursday extra Potions and Friday evening is reserved for no homework or serious things, just fun with friends. Saturday morning I have Quidditch and I have a meeting with Lord Weasley Saturday afternoon. Sunday we are visiting the remaining Potter properties in the UK, but maybe Sunday night? I'll have to make sure he doesn't have anything then."

"What about a morning before breakfast?" Lily asked.

"Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday I have workouts and Tuesday and Friday I have Quidditch."

"Son, when do you have time for fun?" James asked, slightly concerned.

"I spend time with my friends during mealtimes, usually on Saturday afternoon except this week because I need to discuss the Weasley compulsions with Lord Weasley, and Sunday afternoon. It's why my friends all agreed to keep Friday evenings homework free so we can all just have fun and forget all the serious stuff. I usually have time before dinner but that's when I generally do homework. Which I really should be doing right now as well."

"Well I suppose we will wait a week," Mrs Potter said. "And you should go do your homework dear, I wouldn't want you to get behind."

Harry told everyone goodbye and left the teacher's wing, in search of Viktor. He found him in the library and quickly summoned his own homework. "Hi Viktor."

"Hi. You done?"

"Yes. So I have something exciting to tell you. Yesterday while at Potter Manor we found the portraits of my parents and grandparents."

"Harry that's wonderful! I'm assuming you've been talking to them?"

"Yes, I have been. They also want to meet you, but I was able to put them off until next Sunday."

"I don't mind meeting them. Why don't we go now?"

"Are you sure? They will ask a lot of questions."

"I'm sure. Come on, let's get it over with."

"Should I bring all my friends?"

Viktor smiled. "That might not be a bad idea. Let's go gather everyone."

Soon a group of students made their way to the teacher's wing and walked through to Sirius' quarters. When they walked in, Sirius, Remus and Severus looked up in surprise. "I've come to introduce everyone."

Once everyone had come fully into the living room, they all turned to the portraits. "James, Lily, Grandma, Grandpa, these are my friends. Starting over here we have Hermione, Cedric, Fred, George, Alex, Viktor, Eric, Neville and Susan. Everyone, these are my parents and grandparents."

Everyone exchanged greetings and Harry could see the delight in his parents and grandparents' eyes. "How wonderful to meet everyone Harry," Lily said. "Now we'd like to talk to Viktor."

"I will escort everyone else out," Severus said. "Come on, you can all go through Sirius' office instead of the common room. You know better than to bring them that way Harry."

Harry shrugged. "It was more convenient. I'll see you all in the Common Room when we are done."

"Harry, we'd like to speak to Mr Krum alone," Mr Potter said.

"No. I will not leave him here to fend for himself." Harry demonstratively sat down on the couch and motioned for Viktor to sit down as well.

"Young man you seem to forget that I'm your grandfather."

"I have not forgotten and don't mean any disrespect, but you should not be asking him anything that can't be said in front of me."

"Harry, I don't think anyone has ever dared tell him no," James said with a wary glance at his father.

"That's unfortunate. Now please, commence your interrogation so we may return to our studies."

Severus cuffed Harry on the back of the head in passing. "Show some respect Harry. He is still your grandfather."

"What are your intentions with my son?" Lily asked

"At this moment I simply want to get to know him better ma'am. I love spending time with him, and I think he is a wonderful guy."

"What are your plans when you graduate?" James asked.

"That depends on where we stand with the war sir. If there is still war, I'd like to do my part in protecting the innocent. Once the war is over I'd love to do an apprenticeship in spell crafting and work in the Department of Mysteries."

"Where do you see Harry fitting in with that?"

"Harry hasn't decided on a career yet sir. He wants to make a lot of changes to a lot of laws and sees himself fully embracing his Lordships. He has also said that when he has children he wants to stay at home and be there for them when they grow up. I would support in whatever he decided to do, and in whatever makes him happy. Personally, I think Harry would be a wonderful father. Even if we don't work out and he starts a family with someone else, his children will be the luckiest children alive and will be surrounded by love and family."

"Where will you live when you graduate?"

"I have not yet decided sir. My family owns a flat in London so it is likely I will live there."

"If you two work out, where would you live?"

"Harry has already expressed his wish to live at Black Manor even after he gets married. He wants to remain close to his guardians and the Manor is large enough to still provide privacy. He also mentioned something about the convenience of live-in babysitters."

"They'll be Marauder grandchildren," Sirius said with a gleam in his eyes. "Living with two Marauders and the son of a Marauder."

"It's a good thing I'll be there," Severus said, amusement clear in his eyes. "At least one of them will be interested in books or potions if it's the last thing I do."

"I'll be there too in case anyone forgot. While I don't mind occasional pranks I will not allow my children to become the next generation Weasley twins." Harry said.

"Fred and George?" James asked.

Everyone nodded. "They are worse than the Marauders ever were," Remus said. "And they get caught much less."

"They are brilliant though. They want to open their own joke shop and I think they will succeed. They are amazing wizards, even if they only show it through the ingenuity of their pranks, joke products and potions," Harry said. "They make some joke products already and they are incredibly popular. Even more so than Zonko's. I've learned a lot from them."

"Please tell me you've played some pranks?" James said.

"I have. I'm not nearly as bad as the Marauders were but at least I'm not completely boring," Harry grinned.

"How about you Viktor?" Mr Potter asked.

"I'm not the pranking type sir. I'd rather spend my energy elsewhere. However, I don't tell on others when they are playing pranks either."

"If Harry was about to do something dangerous, would you stop him or tell an adult?" Mrs Potter asked.

"That depends. If it's just some rule breaking, probably not. If I felt it was truly dangerous, I would either stop him or tell an adult depending on my options at the time. For example if Harry snuck out to play a prank with Fred and George I probably wouldn't say anything because he's not alone and still in the castle. If he tried to sneak out to go to Hogsmeade, I'd say something because he'd be leaving the castle wards."

"How many children do you want?" Lily asked.

"I have not decided on a number ma'am."

"Harry?"

"Six," Harry grinned. "That way they can each get one of my titles. If I acquire more titles, we'll have more kids. The Black and Potter titles are by far the largest, not just in title but also in money and properties, but I would ensure all children have enough to live on and at least one property so that's not an issue."

"Which last name would you take?"

"Potter-Black," Viktor said easily. "He's a five time Lord, and Heir to another House. I will take his name and our children will have his name."

"You would do that?" Harry asked.

"Without doubt. As the Slytherin title is the only one without properties or money, I say the entire Krum inheritance goes to the Slytherin Lordship. That way each of our children would have money and property."

Harry sighed. "I'm glad I still have many many years to decide which child gets what. For now I have a will made out for what I already have but no children to complicate matters."

"And it will stay that way for a good long while," Mr Potter said sternly. "You two boys better not be thinking about doing anything that could potentially get you pregnant."

"Grandpa we aren't even close to that. I'm fifteen. I will not even consider having children until the war is over. I will not bring a child into this world in the middle of a war."

"Harry, that reminds me. It's almost time for you to go to Gringotts and get tested for compulsions again," Severus said, looking at his watch. "It should be a quick trip as I'm sure you've been casting your detection spells, but you agreed to doing that every couple months."

"I had forgotten that was today. I suppose we might as well go do that now and get it over with. Has it really been three months since the last time?"

"Yes it has been. We'll all go," Sirius said. "Viktor, I'll show you out. Harry will come find all of you when he gets back."

When they got to Gringotts they were immediately shown to Healer Thag's office. "I'm glad you came in Lord Potter-Black. I have found a compulsion on two attendees of Madame Bones' luncheon. I have sent out letters to all attendees to get tested, upon Madame Bones' request. You may go first and then we will test Lord Prince as well."

Harry quickly laid down, his face pale. He couldn't remember if he cast charms that day or not. He had been talking to Susan and knew he accepted at least two drinks from a waiter. When he sees a compulsion listed on the parchment he closed his eyes. "I'm so sorry."

"We'll discuss it at home," Sirius said. Harry quickly took the potion to remove the compulsion and traded places with Severus.

"I was so busy talking to Susan I must have forgotten," Harry said softly.

"I warned you right before going there to ensure you cast it on everything."

"I know and I take full responsibility."

"Very well Lord Prince, you are cleared. We were unable to determine who the compulsion potion came from. I have filed a copy of the report in your vaults should it be needed in the future. The compulsion was an anti-Ministry compulsion, the purpose of it was unclear."

As soon as they got back to Hogwarts Sirius took Harry by the arm and into his bedroom, away from inquisitive and meddling portraits. Severus and Remus remained out in the living room. "They found a compulsion on Harry. Apparently a luncheon at Madame Bones had 2 attendees with them in their system, so Gringotts was already going to test everyone who attended. I came back clean but apparently Harry once again forgot to cast detection charms. We've made it clear what the consequences are," Severus explained.

"Because Harry has so much influence it's incredibly important he tests everything. Now it was just a compulsion but it could have just as easily been poison. We are more worried about that than we are about the compulsions since we get those tested every few months. He barely escaped a poisoning over the summer so he should be extra cautious." Remus added.

A red eyed Harry emerged from his bedroom a few minutes later. "I'm sorry for forgetting again."

Severus stood up and pulled Harry into a hug. "It's alright son. It was a mild compulsion this time, but it could have been poison. It's why it's so important. We will not lose you to something so simple and avoidable."

"I know. I'm going to wash my face and then meet my friends. Dad decided against grounding me this time," Harry said before walking into the bathroom. Sirius sat down with the others and sighed.

"Does it ever get easier?" he asked, looking at Mr Potter.

"No, it doesn't."

When Harry had left, Mr Potter looks at Sirius. "Do you mind me asking how many?"

Sirius sighed. "That's personal and between Harry and I. You may ask him but it's up to him to tell you or not."

"Fair enough. I approve of this Viktor. He is a nice, down to earth young man who has a clear view of what he wants in life."

Severus nodded. "He's been good for Harry. Even if they don't work out I could see them remaining good friends. He's the right balance of seriousness and fun. I know he doesn't do pranks but I've overheard him giving tips on how to improve pranks they are planning. I haven't decided yet if I could see them together the rest of their lives, but Harry is still young and right now at this point in his life he needs someone like Viktor."

"Does he know what he's getting into, wanting six children?"

"Absolutely," Sirius grinned. "The Weasleys have seven and Harry loves how busy it always is there. Even with him not talking to Ron and Ginny right, he has seen what a large family can be like. He's also strong enough to be able to handle that many. But right now he's fifteen and I'd rather not think about him having kids just yet. I'm too young to be a grandfather. Their biggest test will come when Viktor graduates and Harry still has two more years at Hogwarts."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, I think today we should work on the Patronus," Harry said to the assembled group in the Room of Requirement. It was Monday afternoon and they had met for another defense practice session. "It has really helped me in the past and as Voldemort used Dementors in the last war it's not inconceivable he would do so again in this war. Knowing how to fight them is incredibly important. Who in here has a corporeal Patronus?"

Only Viktor and Cedric raised their hand and Harry nodded. "Alright. The Patronus is all about intent. The incantation is Expecto Patronum. While saying it, you have to think of a happy thought. I mean something that brings pure joy and happiness to your heart, so not something small like getting the broom you always wanted. I want you all to take a minute to think about something happy. Once you've thought of something, make sure you are focusing all your thoughts on that memory while casting the Charm. Remember to focus on the positive emotion from that memory. Viktor, Cedric and I will come around to help everyone. Remember, it's all about intent and focus!"

Harry waited for a few minutes to give everyone time to come up with a memory to use, and then started making his way around. "Alex, what memory are you using?"

"When I found out I'm a wizard."

"That might not be strong enough. The stronger the emotion, the stronger your Patronus. I don't use a particular memory, I use my love for my family to power my Patroni."

Alex nodded and then tried again. "Do you mind me asking what you are using now?"

"It's back when I was younger and mum was still alive. We were outside having a picnic, just being a family. We were all so happy."

Harry smiled. "That's a good memory. Focus on the happiness you felt. Then try to force that happiness through your wand along with your spell casting. Everyone! Keep in mind this charm is seventh year material. I do not expect everyone to get it on the first try, or at all right now. There are many adult wizards who never succeed. Do not feel discouraged!"

Harry made his way over to Eric and pulled him aside. "I'm going to work with you on easier things first. Your magical core needs to develop a little bit more before we force it to do something as hard as the Patronus charm. Do you know how to shield?"

Harry knew Viktor and Cedric were helping everyone else while he worked with Eric on his shield. He knew if there was nothing else Eric would learn, a good shield was crucial. By the end of the practice, Eric was able to bring up an acceptable shield. "We'll work more on that next week. We should all get to dinner before we get in trouble."

When the group all walked into the Great Hall together and sat at the same table, Sirius turned to Severus. "Something is going on. That is a good group of people for Harry to be with, but none of them have been seen together before."

"We'll watch it, but with that combination of people I don't see many issues. You could always ask him," was Severus' reply.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Thank you for meeting me Headmistress."

"What can I help you with Mr. Potter-Black?"

"The Dueling Tournament was a huge success. The entire school came together and afterwards everyone stayed to mingle. House loyalty didn't matter, and everyone was there just to have a good time. Yes, everyone wanted to win but those who didn't still enjoyed watching everyone else. I was wondering if you would consider doing something like more regularly. Maybe once a month we could have an evening that the whole school got together for something. It could be a chess tournament, or a movie night. We could even do a talent show. It don't think it matters much what it is, as long as it's open to everyone. I believe it would promote school unity, which I think is much needed."

Minerva couldn't help but smile at the young man sitting before her. "I think that is an excellent idea. I will bring it up at the next staff meeting to ensure the staff is agreeable to supervising. I will review the school calendar and come up with dates that work and post it, then we can put a suggestion box in the Great Hall so everyone can suggest something for those nights. It would get everyone involved."

"Thank you Headmistress. I won't take any more of your time, I know you are busy. I'm also going to be late for Arithmancy if I don't get going."

"Would you like a note?"

"No thank you, I think I'll make it on time."

Harry ended up a few minutes later for class but he sat down quickly. "Thank you for joining us Mr Potter-Black. Your tardiness will be noted."

Harry knew she meant she would put it on his progress report, but Harry wasn't worried. He knew his dad wouldn't say anything over one tardiness, especially if he explained.

It was now Tuesday, and he had met with Draco once. It had been awkward and Draco hadn't been talkative, but then again Harry hadn't expected him to be. He hoped meeting with a mind healer would help him, but even if it didn't, Harry would continue to meet with him every evening to see how he was doing.

When Harry got to his extra Defense lesson that evening he simply fell down on the couch, face in the couch cushions. That's how Sirius found him. He gave Harry a playful swat on the bottom and told him to sit up. "You alright pup?"

"Can I go fly? As Lightning I mean?"

Sirius looked at Harry and could see the slight weariness around his eyes. "Absolutely. Let's wait for Severus so Shadow can fly with you."

"You know son, we have not yet seen Lightning," James said from above the fireplace.

Harry stood up and quickly transformed. He didn't stay like that long before transforming back. He laid back down on the couch, his head on Sirius' lap this time.

"I imagine you flying circles around Moony during the Full Moon," James grinned.

Harry shrugged. "I'm not allowed outside. I have to stay with papa on Full Moon nights."

"And rightfully so!" Mr Potter said. "There is still danger involved and he could get injured! Have you forgotten my reaction when I found out what you boys were doing?"

James winced and Harry laughed. "Don't worry grandpa, I've been caught outside once during a Full Moon and have no intention of repeating that experience."

By the time Severus walked in, Harry was fast asleep on the couch. "He must be exhausted. I'm assuming no lessons tonight?"

"He wanted to go flying with you as Lightning so we were waiting. We'll let him sleep."

When it was almost time for curfew, Sirius gently woke Harry up. "Come on pup. You have to go meet with Draco, and then you should head to bed."

Harry groaned, not wanting to move. Slowly he got up from the couch, gave a sleepy wave to the portrait and left for the dungeons. He was glad that Draco wasn't in any more of a mood to talk and soon Harry found himself in bed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

JAMES AND LILY POTTER FOUND!

by: Rita Skeeter.

According to the stories around Hogwarts, Lord Harry Potter-Black left Hogwarts over the weekend to visit Potter Manor. While there, he made a remarkable discovery in the form of two portraits! The portraits of James and Lily, and James' parents were found at Potter Manor. This required further investigating. Could this be true? Would the Boy Who Lived finally have his parents back?

What we found was that the story is not only true, the portraits now also have a place at Hogwarts so Harry may speak with them anytime. Harry's friends were heard discussing their introduction to the portraits. These discussions took place within a privacy bubble, as it's clear they did not want anyone listening in, but whoever cast the charms did not cast them strong enough, and several students were able to listen in.

Maybe even more remarkable was the fact that Lord Potter-Black appears to call Lord Prince papa and Sirius Black dad. So where does that leave James Potter? Will he be left out of the equation because he's been replaced by his best friend and arch nemesis, or will Harry turn to James for advice and turn away from his 'papa' and 'dad'? This reporter intends to find out.

Harry slammed the paper down, and stalked out of the Great Hall. Many students, and staff, heard him muttering angry words that were better not repeated, as he did so. Sirius, Severus and Remus looked at each other before quickly getting up and rushing after Harry. They found him in Sirius' living room, pacing and clearly trying to control his anger. Severus grabbed him by the shoulder and sent him to the corner with a firm swat. "Nose in the corner and stay there until I tell you otherwise."

They all knew the portraits were watching, so Sirius pulled out his copy of the Prophet and showed it to them so they knew what was going on. They could all see Harry standing in the corner, clenching his fists.

"Padfoot? Just how powerful is he?" James asked softly.

"He made Black Manor shake on its foundation when he lost his temper inside the magic room once. He would destroy part of the castle if he lost it inside here."

James, Lily, Mr and Mrs Potter all looked at Harry in shock. "Shouldn't you take him outside?" Mr Potter finally asked.

Sirius shook his head. "It's too late. We need to teach him to go outside when he gets angry, but he feels safe here so he comes here. Severus taught him Occlumency so it's rare for him to truly lose his temper and Severus knows how to handle him in moments like this. The swat was to get his attention focused on Severus, the corner is because pacing makes him more aggravated and standing in a quiet corner forces him to focus on calming down his breathing."

They all watched Severus walk over to Harry and softly talk to him. Harry visible calmed down slowly, and when Severus pulled him into a hug they all sighed in relief, knowing that he had calmed down enough.

"Want to talk about it?" Sirius asked once Severus and Harry were sitting down. He quickly ordered breakfast for all of them, and with a pointed look at Harry forced him to eat.

"She used an eavesdropping spell on my friends, or she listened in as an Animagus. I'm going to squash that bug!"

"Rita Skeeter is a beetle Animagus," Sirius said in explanation. "I will teach your friends Anti-Animagus and Anti-Eavesdropping charms to include in their privacy wards. Floo call Lord Peterson so we can determine what to do next. Remus, you should send a Patronus to Minerva and ask her to cover your first class. Neither Severus nor I have one right now, and Harry is in your class first."

"Dad, could you floo call Lord Peterson? I'm still angry and don't want to overpower the floo call and blow up the fireplace."

Sirius nodded and made the call. "He said he will be right over. Finish your breakfast Harry."

Once Lord Peterson was in the living room he smiled at the portraits. "I'm happy to hear the article is actually true. It is a pleasure to meet all of you. I'm Lord Peterson, Harry's solicitor and friend. House Peterson has an Alliance of Friendship with House Black, and House Potter, but I also truly care about him. I received a letter from my son Eric that he had met you already."

"Thank you for taking good care of our son," James said with a smile. "Now do we have grounds to sue the Prophet?"

"Harry, do you wish to talk in front of everyone or in private? I apologize everyone but as Harry is emancipated he gets to choose who he wants in the room, and what he wants to do."

"They can all stay," Harry said. "What can we do? I'm not as upset over the fact that everyone knows we have portraits. I'm upset that she eavesdropped on my friends in Animagus form, which is an illegal Animagus form, and then slandered by name by insinuating that I would turn my back on my guardians just because I have a portrait of my father."

"I will file suit against Rita personally. I will force the court to force her into Animagus form. If she is found guilty, she will be in a lot of trouble as spying in Animagus form is illegal and she did not have permission to be at Hogwarts. Second we can file suit against the Prophet for printing the story. However, as of this morning you are a majority stockholder of the Daily Prophet and the Quibbler. The Goblins thought it would be a wise investment. Therefore, if you file suit against them you would be suing yourself. Instead, you could demand they print a retraction."

Harry grinned. "I want a formal meeting with the editor of the Prophet and Xeno Lovegood for the Quibbler. I want to lay down some ground rules, the main one being that nothing gets printed unless there are solid facts backing it up, or it's a direct, unaltered, quote. I will have Dora schedule it and I want you there. Also, please go ahead and file suit against Rita. I want her stopped. She had been good about not posting much, but the eavesdropping thing has me furious."

"You seem fairly calm. The Occlumency is working?"

"It is now. I almost lost it but a few well placed threats from papa calmed me down."

Lord Peterson raised his eyebrow at Severus. "All I did was tell him that if he blew up the school I would ensure he was unable to sit down comfortably for the first couple years in the afterlife."

"And he has never told me anything he didn't mean," Harry said. "I wasn't going to risk it."

"If you are that angry, you should go outside Harry," Remus said. "You can't do much damage on the Quidditch pitch. The most that would happen is we'd have to rebuild the stands and hoops."

"I know. And it's far enough away from the building. I'll try to remember next time. I would have been less upset if she had eavesdropped on my conversation. The fact that she targeted my friends had me angry so quickly I didn't have time to raise my full Occlumency shields."

"I will go take care of everything now. Do you want me to coordinate with Dora to schedule the meeting?"

"If you could. She will also need to stay informed regarding the trial so she can put it on the schedule."

Lord Peterson said his goodbyes and disappeared out the front door. He wanted to see how his son was doing while he was in the castle anyway. "Come on Harry, let's go fly for a bit," Severus said. "I think transforming into Lightning will help you relax further and you love flying."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hi dad, what are you doing here?" Eric asked upon seeing his dad in the hallway.

"I was with Harry and decided since I was in the castle I would come see how you were doing. I haven't received any letters home yet so at least you're staying out of trouble."

"Or not getting caught," Eric grinned. "Did mum sent any snacks?"

Henry smiled and pulled a tin out of his robes. "You know her too well. I believe these are cookies. Make sure to share."

"I will. Is Harry alright? He looked really angry."

"You know I can't talk about it Eric. You'll see him at lunch and can talk to him then. I need to get going. Stay out of trouble, alright?"

"I'll try. Bye dad!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

At dinner that evening Harry looked up in surprise when Dobby popped in with a personal plate for him, before doing the same for Severus, Sirius and Remus. He grinned when he looked at it before casting his charms.

"Where did that come from," Hermione asked. "It looks really good."

"My personal chef will be providing me with breakfast and dinner."

"You have a personal chef?"

"I do. I must have forgotten to tell you. I wasn't sure what day he would start but we signed the contracts a week ago."

"I'm jealous," Viktor said, looking from his Shepherd's Pie to Harry's steak with roasted potatoes.

"He'll be preparing healthy foods, not the greasy stuff the Great Hall serves," Harry said.

"Hmm I do like my greasy foods," Viktor said thoughtfully.

"How about once a month I ask him to provide everyone in our Defense practice group with dinner after practice? That way you can all sample his wonderful cooking and won't be left out. I can't very well ask him to do that all the time, it'd be too many people to cook for."

Everyone nodded in agreement and Harry made a mental note to inform Jamie when he went to visit Potter Cottage this weekend. He had to make sure the wards were up to date and everything was alright. He knew Jamie and his family had alright moved in, but as he was technically their landlord now he had to make sure there were no problems. He also wanted to see if Jules would accept a house elf to do the cleaning for her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Thank you for coming to the Burrow Lord Black," Arthur said formally while inviting Harry into his study.

"It is no problem Lord Weasley. Will your Heir be joining us today?"

"Yes, he will be. He should be here any minute. Would you like some tea?"

"Yes please. Quidditch practice was quite intense this morning. Fred and George were given permission to aim the bludgers at us instead of away from us so we could practice dodging them. I think they enjoyed it a little bit too much."

Arthur chuckled right as Bill walked in. "I don't doubt that they did. Now that Bill has joined us, why don't we get to the point. We've had all compulsions removed. Have you noticed a difference in behavior with anyone?"

"I have not. Ginny continues to follow me everywhere she can. Ron remains distant, but I do believe he realizes that we will never be friends again and is simply making new friends for himself. I've never had a problem with anyone else. I must admit I was most disappointed that Mrs. Weasley did not have any compulsions to explain her behavior."

"I will speak with Ginny," Arthur said. "Please do not hesitate to confront her should my conversation with her fail to change her behavior. I have spoken to my wife and she has not changed her opinion. She firmly believes you should be with our daughter."

"I will give Ginny until Monday. Viktor is very close to hexing her, and I will not stop him if he does. She has taken to interrupting us when we are on the couch in the All-House Common Room together, or when she sees us around the school. Earlier this week she created a disturbance when I was on supervision duty as prefect, requiring me to deal with it. It was not coincidence it happened right when we kissed."

Bill sighed and Harry looked at him. "She's very obviously jealous and trying to break you up. Father will talk to her, and I will be with him to ensure she takes it seriously. We will do so this evening. I received a letter from Fred that she is actually embarrassing the family with her behavior and he is close to dealing with her himself."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Harry said. "The final thing I wanted to ask is whether Molly has been in contact with Dumbledore?"

Arthur sighed. "I intercepted a letter from her to him, telling him about the compulsion removal."

Harry nodded, having expected that. "I'm assuming you have forbidden her from contacting him?"

"I have Lord Black."

"I would like to be informed should she try again, or if he contacts her. Also, from now on, I do not want Molly, Ginny or Ron to be told anything. If she doesn't know anything she can't share it."

"I understand Lord Black. I fully agree. I have already informed Charlie, Percy, Fred and George of this as well."

"Excellent. Is there anything else you wished to discuss?"

"No Lord Black. I do wish to tell you I'm glad the Prophet posted a retracting to their article regarding your parents' portrait. I'm happy you can get to know them now."

"As am I. It has been wonderful getting to know them, even if my grandfather is surprisingly strict."

Arthur chuckled. "I remember him very well. He was loving but stern. He has only been with you for a week, you already got in trouble?"

"Let's conclude the formal part of this meeting," Harry said with a smile. "Then we can talk over some tea."

The quickly followed protocol to conclude the meeting and moved to the living room. "To answer your question, I did. Sirius has requested weekly progress reports from my professors and I was tardy to several classes this week. My grandfather insisted I be punished. James and Sirius disagreed while Severus and Remus agreed. For each of the times I was tardy I had a valid reason for being late, but Mr Potter, Severus and Remus felt that I should manage my time better and I needed some incentive to be on time. It did not help that one of the lessons I was late for was Potions, and Severus takes that personally."

"Do you mind me asking who won the argument?"

"James and Sirius lost the argument that I shouldn't be punished, but won the argument over what the punishment should be. I ended up getting three swats from Severus, one for each tardy. It's not much of a punishment, so I think James and Sirius really won in the end but Mr Potter, Severus and Remus got to feel like they won. Mr Potter had argued for a spanking, Severus for a detention and Remus for lines."

"How tardy were you?"

"In two instances around five minutes. The third instance, which happened to be Potions, I was fifteen minutes late."

"A spanking would have been a hard punishment for that," Bill said.

"I agree and so did everyone else. That was tossed out almost immediately as an option. Sirius and James felt a warning would be sufficient, but Severus felt that tardiness showed disrespect to the professor. Remus argued that I needed to learn to be on time for everything, as being consistently late does not look good. I won't deny that both Severus and Remus were right. I have been more consistently late to things lately and I recognize it as a problem."

"Charlie struggled with the same thing," Bill said. "He admitted it was a problem as it does show disrespect, and in fourth year he asked me to help him with it. He was tired of always losing points for it, and was mature enough to admit he had a problem."

"I never knew that," Arthur said. "I do remember him getting into less trouble in general starting that year."

Bill nodded. "He asked me to hold him accountable. He felt that the accountability he had at home wasn't there at Hogwarts, and he admitted that he needed it. Even now he'll come to me when he feels he needs to be held accountable for something. Some people just need that, and I felt honored he asked me."

"Do you mind me asking how you helped him?" Harry asked.

Bill smiled. "It depended what it was. For tardiness I would generally give him a swat on the bottom or make him write lines. I once grounded him to the dorm when he was openly disrespectful to Professor McGonnagal. She would have sent a letter home, but I told her I would deal with it, that Charlie had asked me to to provide accountability and I wanted to be consistent in that. She allowed it after she admitted she had seen his behavior change for the better. Dad would have probably come to school and paddled him if he had received a letter. His grades had improved drastically, he worked harder and he became one of the more popular boys at school."

"You still provide that for him now?"

"Charlie got used to talking to me about everything. From love interests to things he was struggling with to career choices. In return I talk to him about everything in my life. I'm his sounding board while he is mine. And the accountability now works both ways. He holds me accountable as much as I hold him accountable. Fred and George have that with each other as well."

"How does that work? You're both adults," Harry asked, genuinely curious.

Bill could tell that Harry wasn't mocking them, just curious. "One of my biggest struggles is that I work too much. I don't know when to stop or say no when I'm asked to do something. Charlie and I share a flat, as you know, and he puts limits on how long I can work. Knowing that I have to face him if I overdo it, I now make sure I leave work on time. I have more time for friends and family, and in general I have more energy, now that I work normal hours."

"Now I'm curious how he gets you to come home," Arthur said. "You always were too stubborn for your own good."

Bill chuckled. "Well a few weeks ago I had to stand in the corner for half an hour when I didn't come home until well after midnight when I was supposed to have gotten off work at six. He gave me a time out like I was a small child, and I truly felt reprimanded. It rarely ever happens, but I believe everyone needs that one person in their lives who knows when to step in and make you slow down. In return, Charlie struggles with not knowing when to admit he's sick and stay in bed. I've literally stuck him to his bed before when he had the flu and wanted to go to work anyway. But most of the time it's simply having someone who knows you. The real you. The good, the bad and the ugly. The one who has seen you break down and cry, or has seen you shout out with joy when something good happened. We might be brothers but we're also best friends."

"Once you get older you'll also find that in your spouse, but I think it's wonderful you have that now," Arthur said. "Some have that in their parents, but often we don't want to tell our parents everything. As parents we hold our children accountable for their actions, but we can't always be there for everything especially when they get older."

"I hope to find that person for me one day. I love all my fathers and know I can talk to them about anything, but sometimes I wish I had that with someone my own age."

"If you ever need someone closer to your age, you can always come to me," Bill said. "If necessary I would be willing to take an oath so you have protection that it won't be shared with anyone."

"I could always provide protection under one of my Lordships and use family magic if that were necessary. Thank you Bill, I might take you up on that. I know I could do the same with my friends, but sometimes I need someone who is a little more mature but still close to my age. Does that make sense?"

"It does. You've experienced more than anyone else in your life, so your friends won't understand all of it. You know where to find me. Even if I can't help, I promise I'll be a good listener."

Harry smiled. "Thank you. It will especially be useful when it comes to courting. My fathers might say they're alright with everything, but I can tell it makes them slightly uncomfortable and they want nothing more than for Viktor and I to keep a little bit of distance between us."

Arthur laughed. "All parents feel that way."

"I need to get going. Thank you for talking to me and I'm sure we'll talk again soon," Harry said as he stood up.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So we're visiting all Potter properties, correct?" Harry asked. "Except of course Potter Manor since we've already been there."

"Correct. We are starting at Potter Cottage. Jamie and Jules are expecting us. After that we'll visit Godric's Hollow, even though it will probably be incredibly hard. We'll finish the day in Spain, I've arranged for a portkey," Dora said. "You need to bring me through the wards as your stewart at each property so I can access them should it be needed as part of my duties. You'll also need to make sure nothing is needed and ensure there are enough elves to properly care for everything. You need to decide what to do with Godric's Hollow at some point, as it's in stasis right now."

"Alright. Let's head to Potter Cottage."

As soon as they had apparated to just outside the wards, Harry keyed Dora to the wards and they walked up to the front door. The cottage did not have Muggle repelling wards which is what allowed Jamie and his family to live there.

"Harry! Come on in," Jules said with a smile. Nora and Jason came barreling down the hallway and launched themselves at Harry's legs.

"Hi Nora, Hi Jason," Harry said, picking Jason up in his arms. "You want to show me your house?"

Nora grabbed Harry's free hand and started showing him around. She started in the living room, which was where they had entered and walked through to the kitchen. Soon he had also seen the library, the office and the dining room.

As soon as they reached the landing upstairs she showed him the first room, which was the master suite with private bath. On the right of the hall was a guest room, and next to it was what appeared to be a play room. "This is very nice. You spend a lot of time playing in here?"

"Yes!" Nora exclaimed. Harry noticed that the two rooms were connected with a bathroom. The last two rooms were Nora and Jason's bedrooms with a bathroom across the hall. Harry smiled at seeing the children's rooms and Jason wanted to be put down in his to show him his toys. Harry happily obliged and listened to the little boy's babbling. Nora didn't like that he was focusing on Jason, so after a few minutes she grabbed his hand again and took him to the playroom to show him her favorite toys.

"Alright children, let's go back downstairs," Jules said with a smile from the doorway. As soon as they got downstairs Jules disappeared into the kitchen to make tea.

"Jamie, I wanted to ask if you could cook dinner for my friends as well as us one night a month. My friends saw my food and I told them that you can't cook for everyone, but I would see if you'd be willing once a month."

"That's fine. Dobbie could help me that day, as it would likely be too much work for one person."

"Thank you," Harry said with a smile. "I'll make sure it's on the calendar so we all know when it will be."

"That works. I must admit I love the kitchen at Black Manor. Being taken there by Dobby every day is a novelty as well."

Harry grinned. Because of the Muggle repelling wards on Black Manor, and the fact it was unplottable, Jamie wasn't able to simply walk up. Dobby had to apparate him in and out of the house each day. "Would you consider allowing me to assign one of my elves to Potter Cottage? The elf would do all the cleaning around here, which would help Jules, and could even help with dinner if you are too busy to cook."

"You have extra elves? I thought Dobby was your only one?"

"No, I have several. Right now my Spanish home has three, but up until now one of them had been assigned to Potter Cottage. His name is Aydon."

"That would be wonderful. This home is large and it would allow Jules to spend more time with Nora and Jason."

"We are visiting Spain later today so I will assign him to Potter Cottage. I must say I really like this home. It's a good size for a family, yet it has a cozy feel to it."

"The backyard is nice as well. Jules already has plans to put in a small vegetable garden and teach the kids how to grow their own food."

"I love that idea. I would love to stay longer but we have several other places to visit today. Is there anything you need at this moment?"

"No, thank you."

Harry stood up and everyone followed. "If there is, let me or Dora know."

Severus apparated Harry to Godric's Hollow, where Harry simply stood outside the wards for several minutes before moving. "I'm not sure I can do this."

"You can," Severus said, squeezing his shoulder. "Something needs done, it can't remain ruins forever. You need to see it before you can decide. It will remain in stasis until you do decide."

Harry nodded before he allowed everyone through the wards. Slowly they walked up to the front door, all looking somber and lost in thought. Stepping through the front door into the living room, Harry sucked in his breath. It was obvious it had been frozen in time. On the coffee table was the Daily Prophet, half open as if someone had been reading it. On a side table was a half full cup of tea. Harry assumed that stasis meant everything was in stasis, as the biscuits next to the tea were not moldy. He ignored everyone else and slowly made his way through the dining area to the kitchen.

He continued making his way through the house, seeing the library and the office on the ground floor before ignoring the scorch marks on the wall and making his way upstairs. To the right he opened a door to see the master bedroom with ensuite bath. A book was on the nightstand and a dressing gown was thrown over the bed. He walked in and opened the wardrobe to see all his parents clothes hanging neatly. On the dresser was a hairbrush and silver mirror, undoubtedly his mothers'. The bathroom was clean with personal items around the sink.

He walked back through to the hallway, trying to contain his emotions. Next to his parents' bedroom was a guest room, empty of all personal items. Across the hall he noticed a bathroom, smiling at the signs that a child had lived there. The Quidditch players on the shower curtain were flying enthusiastically and there was a basket of bath toys on the edge of the bathtub. A small toothbrush was on the sink along with colorful toothpaste.

Stepping back to the hallway, he noticed the family photo's on the walls for the first time. They were large and everyone was smiling. There was one of him with his parents, one of the Marauders smiling. That one was clearly from their Hogwarts days as they were all in uniform. He noticed one of Harry with James and Sirius and one of Harry sitting on Padfoots back. He stood in front of that one, smiling. Right next to it was one of Harry on a toddler broom, zooming around the living room while James and Sirius were cheering him on, Remus standing to the side shaking his head and Lily looking terrified and clearly on the verge of stopping him. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up into the moist eyes of his dad.

"You were brilliant on that broom. Lily was terrified you'd get hurt. Are you alright?"

Harry nodded. "I've seen everything except my room. It's what I remember most when I hear the dementors and I'm terrified to go in. Are you okay?"

"It's hard seeing this, seeing how they literally dropped everything. It's literally frozen in time which makes it that much harder. Take your time Harry, nobody is rushing you."

Harry nodded and stared at the bedroom door for almost fifteen minutes before walking over and slowly opening. He was hit with a wave of emotion at surveying the damage. There was blood on the floor, no doubt his from where debris had fallen on him and his scar had bled. The cot was turned over. Toys were all over the room, and the walls had partially caved in. It was clear that magic was keeping all the elements out and had replaced the wall and roof that wasn't there any longer. He walked into the room and saw the small broom. He picked it up and smiled at it.

"One day I'll have kids and they'll be zooming around on one of these."

Harry calmly walked around the room, looking at the pictures on the walls and the toys he knew he probably had played with. Tears were streaming down his face but he ignored them. He opened the wardrobe and drawers, looking at his old clothes. He smiled at the small robes and dragon pajamas. He picked up the stuffed animals he knew represented Moony, Padfoot and Prongs. "You were always against Peter. You screamed if anyone tried to hand you to him and when you got a rat stuffed animal to represent Wormtail along with those three, you threw it in the fire. Lily put you in time out in your playpen for that, taking all the toys out of it. We should have listened to you, you somehow knew."

"I'm going to leave these here for now, but when I fix this house I want them to have a place. I think I want to leave the house the way it is and simply fix the damage. Remove the personal items and put them in trunks. I want those pictures from the walls in Black Manor and at Hogwarts so I can look at them regularly. After that I want to assign an elf to keep up this house as soon as it's out of stasis."

"Would you like to take the pictures now?"

"No. We'll do that when I'm ready to do more with this. Right now I need to process it all."

Sirius nodded and made his way out of the room. Harry, with one last glance back at the room, slowly followed and made his way down the stairs. He noticed the tears in everyone's eyes and the mood was somber when they walked out.

"Harry?" Severus asked once they were outside the wards.

"I'll be fine. I just need a minute."

"Do you want to see their graves?" Severus asked softly.

Harry shook his head. "I can't, not after seeing the house. One day."

Severus nodded, fully understanding. "How about lunch. It'll be a late lunch but we can go to the last home after that."

Everyone readily agreed and soon the found themselves in Muggle London at a Japanese restaurant. Nobody spoke much during lunch. "Thank you all for coming with me," Harry said. "It can't be easy on any of you and you did it anyway."

"I think we all needed to see it," Remus said. "It somehow provides some closure."

"We should get to the last house. Hopefully it's nice and sunny there," Harry said.

Dora pulled out the portkey, and soon Harry felt the sickening tug in his stomach. When he opened his eyes, he looks up to see a beautiful Spanish villa in front of him. "This is gorgeous."

Sirius smiled. "I've been here once. It's as beautiful inside as outside. Come on, let's go in."

Once again Harry allowed everyone through the wards and they walked inside. Immediately they are greeted by two happy elves. "Master Potter, I'm Taxon and this is Payt. We are happy you have come."

"Thank you Taxon, Payt. Would you mind showing me around?"

Taxon started showing him the villa with excitement. From the large entrance hall they walked into the large, sunny living room. The ground floor also has a large kitchen, dining room and office. A basement leads to a large potions lab. Towards the back of the house was a large sunroom that opened with large french doors to a patio. Harry grinned at the large infinity pool surrounded with lounge chairs. Up the stairs there was a large master bedroom with ensuite bath. Five more guest rooms and three more baths completed the second floor of the home.

"It's beautiful," Harry said once they were back outside and on the back patio with tea, provided by Payt. "It's bright but not too bright, and has a homey feel to it. It is also very relaxing."

"I loved spending two weeks here one summer with James and his parents," Sirius said. "We are fairly close to a small muggle village. The only thing I've ever found that's as relaxing as this place is Black Island. You can't come here unless Lord Potter invites you and it's unplottable. The same is true for Black Island, and I think it adds to your sense of relaxation and safety."

"Soon we'll have to visit my other properties. I know Gryffindor has a Hogsmeade property, and we have 6 more Black properties that I have yet to see."

"That reminds me," Dora said. "I have sent Dobby to Grimmauld Place to ensure Kreacher was doing an adequate job. He wasn't, so you might want to give Dobby permission to get some of the other elves from other properties to help Kreacher clean Grimmauld Place. You will need to have another elf in charge of Grimmauld Place, a Head Elf who can make Kreacher do his job."

"Jairo had been assigned to Black Manor until Dobby wanted full responsibility for it. He's at Hogwarts now. When we get back I will assign him to Grimmauld Place."

"I despise Grimmauld Place. It's where I grew up and where my parents lived," Sirius said. "It has a lot of bad memories for me."

"You don't have to come with us to that one dad," Harry said.

"I will come. I need to put it behind me. Maybe when it's properly cleaned and all dark magic removed it won't be as bad. It's huge. It has eleven bedrooms and eight baths. In comparison, Black Manor has fourteen bedrooms and seven baths. The difference is that Grimmauld Place is a townhouse, so it's tall as opposed to wide. It's six stories tall, including the potions lab in the basement."

Harry nodded. "I know we need to get back to Hogwarts soon, but I look forward to coming back here."

Everyone nodded in agreement before reluctantly getting up and making their way back inside.

AN: Up next we have a new CoMC professor, a closer look at Sirius/Remus' relationship, more Draco and two trials!


	49. Trial and Error

Chapter 49: Trial and Error

"Students, may I have your attention please!," the Headmistress said loudly at breakfast on Monday morning. "I would like to introduce our new Care of Magical Creatures professor, Professor Susanna Smith. She previously taught at a magical school in New York and has recently decided to return to Scotland to be closer to her family. Please give her a warm welcome to Hogwarts."

Everyone politely applauded, looking up at the Head Table to look at the new professor. "She's hot," Seamus whispered. Harry noticed many others sharing that sentiment. Seated next to Severus at the Head Table, Harry noticed him giving her all his attention.

He glared at her. Severus didn't like most people, and he was never welcoming to new staff. What was so special about her that he suddenly changed that? He felt someone looking at him and noticed it was his dad, who was looking at him with a raised eyebrow. Harry turned his head back to his plate and stabbed his eggs. When he saw Severus helping the new professor up from her seat and saw him walk out of the Great Hall with her, he got up himself and left for Transfiguration.

He had barely made it out of the Great Hall when he overheard Severus talking. "I've always wanted to go to New York. We'll be going there soon to visit Harry's New York home, maybe you'll be able to show us around?"

Harry's mouth dropped. The location of all his homes should not be common knowledge. He stalked over to where he heard them talking. Severus was smiling at her, and Harry didn't understand why that made him angry. He straightened and squared his shoulders. "Excuse me, Lord Prince, but last I checked the location of my homes were not common knowledge and I'd like to keep it that way. Professor, while I welcome you to Hogwarts you are not welcome in ANY of my homes. Not now, not ever. Lord Prince, I would hope you don't invite anyone to MY homes without consulting my first."

Harry turned and stalked away, leaving Severus staring after him, trying to contain his shock. "Well, that was clear," Susanna said.

"I'm so sorry, I have no idea where that came from. I can assure you I will be discussing that with him though."

"I need to get to class. Let me know if you want to meet for drinks tomorrow evening."

Harry was fuming throughout the day. Severus had no right to tell her he had a home in New York. All Black properties were unplottable for a reason, yet he invited her to come along on their trip without asking him after knowing her for barely a few minutes. He didn't see his guardians until Tuesday evening, despite their efforts to talk to him. He ensured he left with his friends right after class and didn't arrive until it was getting ready to start. Tuesday evening he walked to the Room of Requirement. He was supposed to duel against Severus and Sirius today, and he was looking forward to it.

When Harry walked into the room, the only ones there were Sirius and Remus. "Where's Severus?"

"He sent a note that he would not be joining us."

"Why not?"

"Harry, he is allowed to do other things. I believe he went to Hogsmeade for a drink with the new professor."

"He was supposed to duel me."

"Harry, you'll duel us instead," Sirius said calmly. "It will be fine."

"Not if he ditches me for her after one bloody day. Forget it. I have too much homework for this," Harry said angrily before stomping out of the room. He couldn't quite explain it, but he was hurt that Severus had already chosen her over him.

Sirius sighed after watching Harry walk out. "I had a feeling this would happen."

Remus nodded. "We warned Severus. He said it would be fine."

"He could have gone with her tomorrow. He should have known that Harry would be hurt. Should we go after him?"

"No. The only one who can fix this is Severus. Come on, let's go to Hogsmeade and drag his butt back here."

Sirius and Remus did just that. They stalked into The Three Broomsticks and right up to Susanna and Severus. "Sorry the interrupting but Severus is needed back at school."

"I'm sure whatever it is can wait a little longer," Severus said calmly.

"Not when that whatever is your son who is incredibly hurt you broke your promise to him and went out with her instead," Sirius said, anger evident in his voice.

"I did not promise him anything."

"You promised to duel him tonight. It was very obvious you hurt him by not being there. You chose her over him, how do you think that makes him feel?"

Severus looked lost, and clearly didn't know what to say. Remus sighed. "We warned you Severus, you didn't believe us. Now you are going back to the school and you are going to talk to your son."

"Your son?" Susanna asked.

Sirius glared. "You really should read a paper sometime. Harry is Severus' son. As well as mine and Remus'.

Susanna's eyes narrowed. "I'm sorry Severus. You are very nice, but I can not get in between you and Harry. Also, I have never wanted children and will never want children. I love teaching, but I do not want to deal with them outside of class. That's when I want peace and quiet. I thought you did too, but you clearly have a lot of other things going on. I know Harry is a teenager, but he will always be a big part of your life. I do not like sharing."

Severus stared at her and then at Sirius and Remus. "Well this drink was intended to see if we had anything in common. So far we had not found anything yet, and Harry is a deal breaker. Let's head back to the castle."

The four adults walked back to the castle, where Severus immediately went in search of Harry. He found him up on the Astronomy tower, petting Hedwig. "Harry, we need to talk."

"Then talk."

Severus sighed before pulling Harry to stand up. "Not here." He guided Harry back towards his quarters and sat him down on the couch.

"I need to start by apologizing. I broke my promise to you and that was wrong. There is nothing more important than someone's word, and you should be able to trust mine. Susanna is nice and it's been a long time since I've met a woman who was even remotely interested in me. It was a novelty, and I was caught up in it. We have already discovered that we have nothing in common, and the fact that I have a son was a dealbreaker. She does not want children nearby when classes are over. She enjoys teaching because she wants to share her knowledge and share her love for all creatures, but at the end of the day she wants peace and quiet and nobody around. My life is too busy for her tastes, and I need to be with someone who enjoys socializing because if I wasn't I'd sit at home and stay isolated the rest of my life. You have shown me how enjoyable friends and family can be, and I do not want to go back to the life I had before. We went out for drinks to see if anything was even possible between us, and even before she found out I am your father, we had already decided we weren't interested in the other that way. But regardless of all of that, I should have never placed anything before you. Do you think you'll ever be able to forgive me?"

Harry sighed. "I understand why you wanted to go out with her. You deserve someone, it's not fair of me not to. I don't understand why I felt jealous. I felt like that from the moment you were friendly to her and helped her yesterday morning, when you're never like that with anyone else. It takes you time to warm up to people. Then you invited her to New York and I felt like you were replacing me already. The feeling was confirmed when you didn't show up tonight. I know one day you'll find someone and I'll have to learn to share, but I don't like it. I've already forgiven you. I can't stay angry at you and I hate it."

Severus pulled Harry into a hug. "Even if I find someone, I should never break a promise to you to be with her. If that happens, I need to manage my time in such a way that it does not interfere with my relationship with you. I promise that from now on I'll talk to you so you don't feel abandoned. I know you are used to adults in your life leaving, but I will not be one of those."

Harry nodded before Severus turned him slightly and steered him towards the door to the common room. "Now you get to apologize to Professor Smith for the way you talked to her yesterday morning."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes. It's the mature thing to do Harry, and you wouldn't want her to think I couldn't control my own son, now do you?"

Harry sighed and walked to the common room. He walked up to Professor Smith and cleared his throat. "Professor?"

"Yes Mr Potter."

"It's Potter-Black ma'am. I would like to apologize for my behavior towards you the past two days. You did nothing to justify my attitude towards you, and as a student and especially as Lord Potter-Black my behavior was inexcusable."

"Thank you Mr Potter-Black. I have not read up on the news in Great Britain the past year or so, and I feel that I've missed out on a lot. The fact that you are Lord Potter-Black is one of those things. How about we pretend the past two days never happened and start over?"

"That sounds good Professor. Welcome to Hogwarts." 

"Thank you."

Harry turned around and went into Sirius' quarters, Severus following with a slight smile. "Thank you Harry, that was very mature."

"It's not like I had a choice, but there was no reason not to. I really was rude to her."

"You know Harry," Mr Potter started.

"Stop," Harry said. "Look, I love you guys," he said to the portraits, "but I already have three fathers and I do not need another set of parents and grandparents. I love talking to you and I love your advice when I ask for it, but the lecturing, scolding and punishing should be left up to Sirius, Severus and Remus. I do not need seven adults constantly on me for everything and debating whether I should be punished for something and what my punishment should be and putting it up to vote. Things were fine the way they were, and you do not need to worry that they let me get away with anything. I love the fact that you are in my life, but you have to understand that I want you here for guidance and support, not in a disciplinary position."

Everyone in the room was slightly stunned before Lily smiled. "I was wondering how long it would take you. We will stay out of it and not lecture, scold or interfere with punishments. We are here to provide guidance only when you ask for it, and share stories about our life. We will listen when you want or need to talk, and stay out of everything unless asked. I understand that when there's too many hands in the pot it doesn't work."

Just then Dobby popped into the living room, a large bruise on his head. "Dobby, what happened?"

"Nothing Master Harry sir. Draco Malfoy needs you sir."

"Dobby, why do you have a bruise. Tell me. Now."

Dobby looked conflicted before lowering his eyes at Harry's stern look. "Draco Malfoy sir was angry sir. Dobby brought him dinner because he wasn't at dinner and he threw the plate at Dobby sir. Dobby tried to talk to him and he pushed Dobby sir."

Harry stood up and gave Dobby a stern look. "Severus will heal you. After that I want you to go to Black Manor until I call you."

Harry was about to walk out of the room when Severus stopped him. "Don't go too hard on him. Listen to him first."

"I will listen and then his backside is going to be very sorry for hurting Dobby."

Harry quickly made his way down to Draco's room and walked in without knocking. He locked the door behind him. "Explain what happened today. Why were you not at dinner and why did you attack my elf."

Draco could tell Harry was furious and quickly started talking. "I've had problems with some of the Slytherins the past few days. I didn't want to deal with it at dinner so I stayed here. When Dobby came and brought me dinner I took out my anger, with people who used to be my friends and now seem fit to hex me whenever they get the chance, on him. I truly apologize. Growing up father allowed me to hurt our elves if I needed to let go of anger. It was almost automatic. I submit to whatever punishment you have for me sir."

"Why did you not tell me about the issues with the Slytherins?"

"I can handle it sir."

"You are permitted to defend yourself. You are not permitted to miss any meals or classes because you do not want to see others. You are a member of House Black. We do not hide. We have a certain reputation to uphold, and part of that reputation is keeping your temper, and defending ourselves against any and all attacks. We do not hurt house elves for any reason. We treat them with the respect they deserve. You will apologize to Dobby."

"Yes sir. I feel bad for hurting him."

"Good. Now what do you propose your punishment to be?"

"I have to decide?"

"Part of taking responsibility is suggesting your own punishment. Trust me, I know it's hard but I also know it really makes you think about what you did. My guardians have used that tactic on me before."

Draco looked hesitant. "I really don't want to be grounded any longer, and lines do nothing for me. I already have detention for another three weeks. As much as it pains me to say it, I think a spanking would be fitting since I physically attacked someone."

"Very well. Would you prefer I administer the spanking or would you prefer if Lord Prince did? As my father it would be acceptable for him to do so as opposed to me."

Draco flushed. "I'd prefer it be you sir. As Lord Black you have authority over me in that manner. I need to learn to accept your guidance, in all ways."

Harry nodded and sat down, resigned to what he had to do, even though he wasn't happy about it. As much as he had wanted to do exactly this when he had left Sirius' quarters, now that it was time to actually do it, he was hesitant. He called for Dobby so Draco could apologize first.

When Harry walked back into Sirius' living room, he sat down on Sirius' lap and hugged him. "I'm sorry for ever making you spank me."

Sirius chuckled. "It's definitely not easy."

"I gave him the option to have papa do it, like we discussed if this ever came up, but he said he would rather be under my authority and how he needed to learn to accept my guidance. He told me afterwards that as much as his butt hurt, he appreciated that I called him a member of House Black and that I hold him to certain standards and behavior. He said his parents never cared as long as he didn't bring shame to the Malfoy name."

"That's how my parents were. But you are his age."

"I know, it's awkward. We actually had a good conversation afterwards. We'll never be friends, we are no longer enemies which is improvement. He confided in me with some things. It's almost like I finally broke through this wall he had around him."

Sirius smiled. "Good. I was hoping you'd be able to. You are a good Lord Harry, no matter how much you doubt yourself."

"My job is to keep him alive and see to his welfare. I will not forego my responsibilities even if I don't like him. And if I can keep him away from the dark side, I've done what I can."

Sirius squeezed Harry into the hug, before pushing him up to stand. "You are getting too big to sit on my lap like a little boy."

"Hmm, unfortunate. It's quite comfortable."

"I'm sure it is. Now it's close to curfew so you ought to head back to one of the common rooms."

Harry laughed before leaving for the Ravenclaw common room, hoping to find Viktor. He's in luck, and soon he's found himself another lap to sit on.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"Harry, wake up," Sirius said early the following morning.

"Five minutes."

"No, now. You slept through your alarm. We have to leave in thirty minutes."

Harry slowly opened his eyes and blinked against the lights. Alex was in his bed, groggily looking at Sirius.

"Harry. I'm going to count to three and then you better be up. I know it's early but you also know the reason workout was cancelled is because we have to be at the Ministry at seven thirty for Rita's trial."

Harry groaned but rolled out of bed. Out of revenge he sent a tickling hex at Sirius before jumping into the bathroom and shutting the door. He quickly showered, knowing his dad would not hesitate to drag him out of the shower if he took too long. To his utter embarrassment that had happened over the summer when he had woken up late and decided to take his time getting ready. It had been for an important meeting and he knew it had been important he was on time. Unfortunately, he had gotten lost in thought and forgotten he was even in the shower.

A loud knock on the bathroom door startled him out of his musing and he quickly finished his shower. He had just wrapped a towel around his waist when Sirius walked into the bathroom. "I'm coming dad," Harry said, glaring at his dad.

"Good. I was worried I'd have to drag you out of the shower again. You always lose yourself in thought in there, you take longer showers than anyone I know. I have put your robes on your bed. You have 5 minutes to get ready before we're leaving, no matter how much or how little you are wearing."

Harry quickly brushed his teeth, magically dried his hair and put on his robes. At exactly five minutes he had just finished putting on his shoes. "See you later Alex. You should probably get moving if you want breakfast."

Alex grumbled and threw the covers back over his head. Harry grinned as Sirius before they both left. They walked down to the gates, quickly apparating to the Ministry. Remus, Severus and Kingsley all had to be there as well as Wizengamot members but Sirius had told them to go ahead when he had realized Harry was still asleep.

They barely made it on time before the doors were sealed. Harry missed the opening words by the Supreme Mugwump, taking more interest in looking around than what was being said. He shook his head when he heard his name. He looked at Lord Abbott, who raised an eyebrow in censure, clearly waiting for an answer and realizing Harry had not been paying attention. Harry felt the warmth creep up his neck. "I apologize sir, could you repeat that?"

"Do you have any questions before we bring in Ms Skeeter?"

"No sir, my sollicitor Lord Peterson has fully informed me of the procedures."

"Very well. Bring in Ms Skeeter."

Rita was brought in and sat down in the defendant seat. Lord Abbott looked at Lord Peterson to begin. "We request Ms Skeeter to be questioned under Veritasserum."

"I object," Rita's barrister said.

"Very well. Then we request the court to perform the Animagus reveal spell. We have reason to believe Ms Skeeter is an illegal Animagus and has used her form to spy on others, including Lord Potter Black and his friends," Lord Peterson said. He didn't do a lot of time in court, but he was trained enough to do so when it was requested by his clients.

"I object," the barrister once again said.

"Denied," Lord Abbott said. "That request is allowed to be made when a defendant is suspected of having used the Animagus form to commit the crime. Auror Sinthe, please perform the spell."

The spell is sent at Rita, and suddenly a small beetle is in her place. Auror Sinthe immediately sends another spell at her to turn her back.

"Based on this reveal, I request Veritasserum be used to determine the extent of her spying in Animagus form and how she came to be at Hogwarts without permission."

"Request approved. Auror Tallynathe, please provide the Veritasserum."

One of the Aurors came forward with the Veritasserum, and soon she was ready for questioning.

"Ms Skeeter were you at Hogwarts last week?"

"Yes."

"Did you have permission to be there?"

"No."

"Do you go to Hogwarts regularly even without permission?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"It is the best way to find out information about Harry Potter. Readers love reading about him but he is too well protected to get close to him. I decided to get close to his friends instead."

"Were you in Animagus form when you found out the information in the article from last week?"

"Yes."

"Did anyone know you were there?"

"No."

"How were you able to hear through the privacy wards?"

"I was in one of the girls' hair so I was inside the wards."

"Is this the first time you have used your Animagus form to get a story?"

"No, I do so regularly."

"Did anyone mention Lord Potter-Black abandoning his guardians in favor of his parents' portrait?"

"No."

"Why was that in the story if it wasn't true?"

"Readers like drama."

"No further questions," Lord Peterson said, sitting down in his seat.

"Any questions from any other members of the Wizengamot," Lord Abbott asked.

Nobody answered so he motioned for the Auror to give the antidote. "Please take Ms Skeeter back to her cell while we deliberate."

Once the courtroom was sealed again, a vote was asked for. It was quick, as it was very clear that she had broken the law and had done so regularly. Thirty minutes later Rita was called back in. Lord Abbott stood up.

"Ms Skeeter. On the charge of being an unregistered Animagus, this court finds you guilty. On the charge of spying in Animagus form, this court finds you guilty. On the charge of entering Hogwarts grounds without permission, this court finds you guilty. On the charge of slander against a Lord, this court finds you guilty."

Ms Skeeter looked like she wanted to protest, but stopped herself. It was clear she knew she had no way to defend herself.

"Ms Skeeter, this court is appalled by your behavior. A true journalist does research and does not spy to get sensationalist stories. You broke the law. We hereby sentence you to four years in medium security at Azkaban, one year for each charge. Your cell will be spelled against Animagi. You will be required to register as Animagus and pay the fine associated with registering late. You will be required to swear an oath never to use your Animagus form to spy or otherwise break a law. Should you break that oath, you will lose your magic. So Mote it Be."

Magic flared around Rita. She was lead out of the room by Aurors and court was dismissed. Lord Abbott motioned Harry over.

"Lord Potter-Black, I understand you are not officially a member yet but it would do you well to pay attention regardless."

Harry looked down at the reprimand. He knew it was deserved, he hadn't been paying attention and this was his trial. "I apologize Lord Abbott. You are absolutely right."

"Then we won't speak of it again. Go ahead, your dad looks like he has something to say." 

Harry looked up and sighed. "Dad, before you say anything, I just got a reprimand from the Supreme Mugwump."

Sirius looked over to where Lord Abbott was already talking to someone else and smiled. "Good. Let's get some lunch and then you can get to your afternoon classes."

"It's just Ancient Runes and History. I can miss those."

"No, you can't. Besides, we have afternoon classes to teach. You will already have extra Transfiguration and Defense homework from this morning, and on Friday you are missing Herbology so you'll have extra work that as well. You are not getting further behind. Come on, we'll get Chinese for lunch, I know you love it."

"Ahh dad, please? I just spend the morning in court!"

"Harry, you're going to class. You like Runes so I don't know why you're protesting so much."

"I just don't want to go."

"Would it have something to do with the test you have in there today?" Severus asked from behind Harry. He had finally made his way over and heard Harry trying to get out of class.

Harry's guilty look tells Sirius that Severus is right. "You studied, right Harry?"

"Well I didn't think I was going to be there and I wanted to spend some time with Viktor last night."

Sirius sighed. "I'll give you the choice. You either go to class and do as best as you can on the test and accept the grade you get, or you miss class and you're grounded until Monday. I will reschedule your exam for this weekend."

Harry looked like he was seriously considering it. He knew he'd never pass, and would probably get in trouble for failing if he did. "I'll skip class. I'm sorry dad, I know I should have started studying before but this past weekend was busy and I didn't feel like doing anything when we got back."

"I know. Your grounding is as much punishment as it is a chance for you to get caught up on your work especially with all the classes you're missing this week. Come on, time to rescue Remus from the Minister and then it's time for Chinese."

When Harry got back to Hogwarts he collapsed in bed for a nap. He had stayed up too late the night before, and he was now exhausted. He knew his dad was right and he needed the extra time to stay on top of things this week, and he also knew he could have spent time with Viktor and studied at the same time.

When Harry sat down to do homework later that afternoon he felt much better. He immediately started his homework, and when his dad came in to let him know it was time for dinner he had finished everything for the next day. "I have common room supervision after dinner, I can still go to that, right?" Harry asked as they were walking down.

"Yes, but please do some homework while there. You will also still be allowed to go talk to Draco each evening, but you are not allowed to play Quidditch or go to your Friday evening hang out. And next time you are overwhelmed, let one of us know and we'll give you time to do homework during extra lessons."

"I will. I should have talked about it instead of just letting it go."

When Harry got to dinner and sat down with his friends he immediately told them he was grounded. "Sorry guys."

"Why are you grounded?" Viktor asked.

"Because I didn't do all my homework or studying, and I got distracted during the trial and didn't pay attention when called upon. Dad felt I need some extra time to stay on top of things this week with two trials and missing classes," Harry said. He couldn't tell them the whole story, as it shouldn't be common knowledge that his dad allowed him to skip class so he wouldn't have to take the test. Thinking about it Harry realized that was really quite decent of his dad to do.

That night just before dinner Harry made his way to Draco's room. "Hi Draco."

"Good evening sir. How did the trial go?"

"Remember, during these talks I'm Harry. I know I'm here as Lord Black but I want you to feel comfortable enough around me to talk, not feel as if we have to stand on protocol. It went pretty well. She was sent to Azkaban for four years, has to register as Animagus and pay the fine, and will lose her magic if she ever uses her Animagus form to break the law again. It was my first criminal trial and I was surprised by how little it's structured like the Muggle trials I've seen on TV."

"Didn't you have Dumbledore's trial?"

"Yes, but that wasn't a criminal trial so I thought it was different. I suppose with Veritasserum there's no way for the Defense to say anything else to disprove what someone has just said. I need to ask my dad to include how the trials work and are structured in my lessons, I've only heard a brief overview. So how was your day?"

"It was good. Now that I shield myself people aren't as hateful towards me, and nobody tried to hex me all day. I went to the All-House Common Room after dinner and did my homework at a table with a Ravenclaw and a Hufflepuff and they were both friendly instead of leaving the second I sat down. I won't deny that felt good."

Harry smiled. "Good! I knew that once people saw that you weren't a bully like before they'd start to accept you. Now I won't be in the All-House Common Room on Friday but you are still welcome to join the others there, alright?"

"Why won't you be there?"

"I'm grounded until Monday. Don't ask, I deserved it."

"Alright. Won't it be weird if I'm there but you're not? You're the one who asked me to join after all."

"No, they will accept you, I promise. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?"

"No. I met with Healer Benson this morning. He really helps me think and talk through a lot. Thank you for making those appointments for me. I feel that he really talks to Draco, not Malfoy, if that makes sense."

"It does. Just like I know if someone talks to me as Harry or as the Boy Who Lived. They either talk to you for who you are, or for who they think you are. I'm glad he is helping. I might have scheduled it and I might be paying for it, but everything you talk about in there is confidential. It will not leave that room. You need a safe place to talk just like everyone else."

"Thank you. Nobody has ever cared about that before. I've always had to be on guard when talking to anyone, even my parents."

"Well then I definitely think this was long overdue. I need to get going. I'm allowed to visit you while grounded but I don't want to push it either."

"It's odd to think that Lord Black still gets grounded like a child."

Harry chuckled. "I agree, but that won't stop my dad from punishing me when he feels I need it. part of me feels he grounded me so I'd spend more time with them. Either way I can't get out of it and I'd rather not even try to break it."

"That's probably a good idea. Did everyone think you spanked me?"

"Yes, and we are keeping it that way, just like we agreed. Don't forget the part where if you are ever in trouble again I will ensure you get spanked, whether I do or not. After your sincere apology to Dobby I let you off, especially since Dobby was over the moon with the socks you conjured for him, but it's a one time deal. On the other hand I can't have people thinking they can walk all over me, so we're keeping up the pretense."

"I prefer it that way. Everyone saw how furious you were and the common idea around Slytherin is to never do anything to have that anger directed towards them. It's actually helping me."

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow."

Harry went back to the teacher's wing, taking the long way there, and sat down in an armchair when he noticed Sirius and Remus cuddled up on the couch already.

"Everything alright?" Sirius asked.

"Yes. I'm ready for the week to be over."

"It will be soon," Remus smiled.

"I'm surprised you're openly cuddling. It seems you always avoid that when I'm around."

"Does it bother you?" Sirius asked, concerned.

"No, not at all. I don't want you to hold back on doing things just because I'm here. Just make sure to cast appropriate silencing charms," Harry grinned.

Sirius threw a throw pillow at Harry in retaliation, but Harry could see the slight flush in his cheeks and grinned. "I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted."

When Harry was out of the room, Sirius turned his head to look up at Remus, who still had his arm around him. "I don't know why we were worried."

"Knowing your guardians are a couple and seeing it are two different things. I can't believe that comment though."

"He's a fifteen year old boy. That is pretty much all he thinks about," Sirius laughed. "Come on, let's get to bed as well. A somewhat early night won't hurt."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Thursday night Harry was restless. He couldn't sleep and really wanted to go for a walk. He knew if he left and got caught his backside would be toast because it's dangerous, and he really didn't want to sit at the trial the next morning with a sore bottom. Finally he walked through the door to Severus' quarters, not wanting to interrupt Sirius and Remus as he had heard the silencing charms go up a few hours ago, and knocked on Severus' door. "Papa?"

A very sleepy looking Severus called him into the room and he cautiously opened the door. "What is it Harry? Are you alright?"

"I can't sleep," Harry said, standing in the doorway. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have woken you. I feel restless and really wanted to go for a walk but knew I'd be in trouble if I did."

"Yes you would be," Severus said while getting out of bed. He spelled robes on himself and walked over to Harry, who was dressed in pajama bottoms and a sweatshirt. "Go put on shoes."

Harry looked confused so Severus walked him to his bedroom to get shoes. "You'll need them for walking around the castle. You're not going barefoot."

"I'm confused."

"I can tell. You and I are going for a walk. You need a walk and you are not going by yourself, so I'm coming with you."

Severus left a note for Sirius and Remus in case they woke up and walked out of the living room. In the common room Professor Smith was sitting by the fire, reading. "Late night walk?" she asked. "Isn't it after curfew for him?"

"It is, but a student is allowed to be out with a parent," Severus said while continuing to walk.

Soon Harry and Severus were walking the halls, neither saying much. "Why are you allowing this?" Harry asked.

"I understand restlessness Harry. I'm also very proud of you for coming to me instead of just walking out. I could have said no and then watched you closer, but you trusted that I have your best interest at heart and came to me."

"I'm learning. And if I'm not learning, at least I've learned when to avoid punishment."

"I think that means you're learning. You're fifteen Harry. We can spank you all we want, you will do what you want and what you feel is right regardless. Don't give me that look, you know I'm right. You felt the right thing to do was to come to one of us."

"Which I did because I prefer the ability to sit comfortably, and I knew what would happen if I was caught out."

"Consequences exist so you think about what you're doing before you do it again. Why do we have that rule?"

"Because it's dangerous to be out by myself at night."

"Did you know it was dangerous before you came to me?"

"Yes. I understand what you're saying, I came to you because I knew going out would be dangerous. I also knew it would get me in trouble, but I knew I'd get in trouble because it's dangerous. So in reality I came to you because it would be dangerous, the consequence just reminded me of that."

"Exactly. And you are correct, your backside would be in imminent danger if you were caught. With Professor Smith out there you would have been caught."

"I really think fifteen is too old for a spanking," Harry said with a sideways look at Severus.

Severus laughed. "I disagree, but I would rather never do that again so keep up the good behavior." 

"I'll try," Harry grinned. "I'm starting to get tired, we should probably get back."

"Sounds good. You think you'll be able to go to sleep now?" Severus asked as they walk through the common room.

"I do. Thanks papa."

"You're very welcome son. Anytime you need me come find me, I don't care what time it is." Neither of them noticed Professor Smith watching them as they walked into Sirius' quarters.

Harry quickly gave Severus a hug before walking to his bed, pulling off his sweatshirt and sliding under the covers. It only took a few minutes before he was fast asleep.

Severus stood in the doorway, smiling at the sleeping boy when Sirius walked up behind him. "What are you doing here?"

"Harry couldn't sleep. He came to my room so we walked the halls for a bit to get rid of his restlessness. He has just fallen asleep."

"He came to you instead of sneaking out?"

"Yes he did," Severus said with a smile as he walked through the living room to the door to his quarters. "I told him I was proud of him for doing so. He really is growing up."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Fifteen years in Azkaban. I must say I'm surprised it's that much," Harry said as they were walking through the Ministry the next morning. The trial against Professor Laydon had just finished and he had been sentenced.

"I'm not," Lord Peterson said. "He used a dark artefact against a Lord. An underage Lord. He then tried to hex the same Lord and resisted arrest. Add to the fact that he is not remorseful in any way and you get fifteen years. It's minimum security so he'll be allowed visitors and he will have less Dementor influence. Now why don't you all come back to my house for lunch? Jamies is teaching Sara today and quite frankly I don't want to be the only one to try it."

Harry looked at his guardians who all nodded in acceptance, which is how Harry soon found himself apparated to Lord Peterson's house. "Harry!" Lisa yelled excitedly.

"Well hello young lady. How does it feel to have the house and your parents to yourself?" 

"It's boring. Mum wants me to help in the kitchen but I left when she blew up the oven."

"She blew up the oven?" Harry asked, not quite able to keep the laughter out of his voice.

"Yes, I blew up the oven," Sara said, coming out of the kitchen. Harry looked at Sara once before dissolving in fits of laughter. Standing in front of him is the normally perfectly groomed Mrs Peterson, wearing an apron, covered in flower and hair all over the place.

Severus, Sirius, Remus and Henry couldn't quite hold back a smile either, but knowing that someone needed to stop Harry, Henry cuffed him upside the head. "Stop laughing, it's rude."

Harry looked at Henry in shock. "You just smacked me."

"I cuffed you, there's a difference. Stop laughing at my wife, she's learning how to cook."

"I apologize ma'am," Harry said politely, mirth still in his eyes. "Would you like some help?"

"Since you laughed, follow me. You'll be helping so we might actually have lunch at some point."

Harry followed Sara into the kitchen, struggling to contain his laughter at seeing the kitchen. "Hi Jamie. I'm here to help."

"Can you cook?" 

"Unfortunately I'm actually good at it. Don't ask. What do you need?"

Soon Harry was helping with lunch, working side by side with Jamie with relative ease. Sara remained to the side, simply watching. "I don't think I should attempt to cook again. Henry won't be happy when he sees the oven."

Jamie and Harry shared a look before declaring that lunch was ready. "I'm assuming you are eating with us Jamie?"

"Yes I am."

Harry nodded before walking into the dining room, where everyone else was already seated around the table. He quickly took a seat between Severus and Sirius. "Lunch has been rescued."

"My wife is banned from the kitchen. That's our third oven."

"And stove," Harry mumbled.

"And what?"

"I think you could do with a new stove as well sir."

Henry sighed. "Jamie, thank you for trying to teach her."

"She's not completely hopeless. Just nothing that requires anything to be heated. Harry however is excellent in the kitchen."

"Practice makes perfect," Harry said softly.

Jamie looked at Harry in confusion. "You're fifteen."

"I've been cooking since I was old enough to hold a pan, which at age 4."

Jamie's mouth dropped open and he looked at the other adults in shock. "That's ridiculous. I would never let my children near a stove."

"That's because you love your children. Look, can we talk about something else?"

"Eric is excited about the chess tournament in a few weeks," Sara said.

Harry smiled. "Some of the suggestions the students have come up with are amazing. The chess tournament was the most popular besides another dueling competition. I haven't seen Eric play chess, but I'm assuming he's good?"

"He is," Henry smiled. "From what he says in his letters he's been practicing too."

"Good. I'm just going to watch. I'm terrible at chess. I don't mind though, I find it boring. Quidditch is much better, the first match is in a week."

"Alex is on your team, right?"

"Yes. He's very nervous but he'll do fine. We're playing Hufflepuff."

Soon conversation turned to different things and Harry started to think about the meeting he had scheduled for after lunch. He would be heading there with Lord Peterson, who would apparate him back to Hogwarts afterwards. He was hoping the meeting would be short, as he is certain Dora has a pile of correspondence waiting for him and he wanted to spend the evening with his friends.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Lord Potter-Black, I would like to start by offering my apology for the articles posted about you in the past."

Harry smiled at the Prophet editor. "Let's forget about the past and focus on the future. I want both the Prophet and the Quibbler to be publications the Wizarding public can trust. That means that from now on, nothing gets posted if it doesn't have facts or unaltered quotes to back it up."

"I believe that is good policy," Xeno Lovegood said with a smile. "My daughter speaks very highly of you. She was furious whenever something unsubstantiated was posted about you."

Harry smiled. "I love Luna. She is very insightful. That was all I wanted to meet about to be honest. I wanted to meet you both in person and let you know the new rule. Lord Peterson will oversee enforcement."

Lord Peterson insisted on walking Harry up to the castle, but Harry had the feeling it was more so he could see Eric than for his safety. "Thank you Lord Peterson. I need to get to my office, but I will see you soon."

"I will be at the Quidditch match. I want to see you play in an actual game instead of just flying for fun. Sara and Lisa will be joining me."

"Could you see if Jamie and his family want to join and help them through the wards if they do? I think they'd might like to see Hogwarts and a Quidditch game."

"I'll ask him. Now get going, I'm sure you have a fun evening planned. I'm going in search of Eric."

XXXXXXX

AN: Little bit shorter chapter. Just to clarify: Draco did not get spanked. I said Harry would be good for Draco, and he will be, but don't expect sudden friendship. Up next: Winter Wonderland.


	50. Winter Wonderland

AN: All the reviews keep me wanting to write more and more! As always, I hope you enjoy this chapter and don't forget to review at the end :) Story requests always welcome! Also, please let me know any suggestions you have for chapter titles for any chapter that does not have one yet. I'm sure you all can be much more creative than me, as titles are not my strong point.

Chapter 50: Winter Wonderland

"Dad?"

"Yes Harry?"

"Can I go meet my friends?" Harry asked. It was Friday night and Harry wanted to go hang out with his friends. He knew he was grounded but hoped he could convince his dad to let him go anyway.

"You are well aware you are still grounded."

"I know, but I've been so busy and I've been really good lately. Please?"

Sirius made the mistake of looking Harry in the eye and sighed. "You get two hours, then I want you back here." 

"Thanks dad!" Harry said excitedly before running down to the All-House Common Room to meet his friends. Sirius looked at Severus and Remus.

"Don't say it. I have no idea how to say no to him when he looks like that."

"Wasn't going to say anything," Severus smirked.

Down in the Common Room Harry falls down on the couch next to Viktor. "Hi guys."

"Harry! What are you doing down here?"

"I'm free for two hours. What are you guys doing?"

"Just talking really. We all wanted a quiet evening. How did you talk them into letting you go?"

Harry grinned. "Very innocent, sweet eyes with a hint of pleading."

Fred grinned. "You're learning. We all learn to use that look when we are toddlers, then by the time we are teenagers our parents are immune to it. Enjoy it while it lasts."

Harry did just that and exactly two hours later he walked back into the living room. He was smiling and all three adults could see Harry was much more relaxed. A day of trials and then dealing with Lordship things had not put Harry in the best of moods, but clearly some time with his friends changed that.

"I'm going to bed. I want to be ready for the Quidditch game tomorrow. Goodnight everyone."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Jamie! I'm glad Henry was able to bring you," Sirius said with a smile. Jamie, Jules, Nora and Jason walked into the professor/visitor stands with Henry, Sara and Lisa. Eric was over with the Gryffindors.

"I must say the castle looks incredible. I'm very excited to see more of it," Jamie said, looking around wide eyed.

"I'm sure Harry will give you all a tour after the match. It's the Gryffindor - Hufflepuff match and it's the first match of the season. Did Henry explain Quidditch to you all?"

Jamie nodded. "Yes he explained it this morning so we all know what will be happening. Oh they are starting! He's flying so fast!"

Out on the pitch Harry grinned at Cedric. "Ready?"

"Absolutely. Don't think I'm going to make this easy for you."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Soon Harry was flying around the pitch, keeping track of the match while trying to spot the snitch. He had spotted Jamie and his family in the stands with Henry, Sara and Lisa and was happy they had been able to come. He spotted the snitch on the other side of the pitch and took of. Cedric was just behind him and soon they were both chasing after it. Harry knew the score was close to even so the snitch would mean winning.

Numerous dives, dips, corkscrews, loops and dodged bludgers later he wrapped his hand around the snitch. The second he did he was side swepped by a bludger and went tumbling down to the ground. He had been at a decent height and hits the soft grass with a sickening thud before holding up the snitch in triumph.

Up in the stands they were all holding their breath watching Harry go after the snitch. When Harry tumbled to the ground Sirius, Severus and Remus were out of their seats and down the stairs before anyone else reacted. "Is that normal?" Jamie asked, shocked.

Henry nodded. "That is what bludgers are supposed to do. He'll be fine. As you can see Severus, Sirius and Remus are already on the ground running towards him to make sure he's fine. He's had worse injuries over the years. Come on, let's go down there."

Down on the ground Harry was standing up when his guardians reached him. "Sit down, we need to make sure you're alright," Severus said.

"Papa, I'm fine. Maybe a couple bruises but fine. Did you see me catch the snitch?" Harry grinned.

"Yes, I did. Let me run a diagnostic. Stay still."

The other players had made their way down and were looking at Harry who was rolling his eyes at his guardians. "You're fine except some bruises. I want you to come to my quarters and get that healed."

"I will, but I'm assuming our guests want a tour first so I'll come after that. Jamie, are you guys all staying for lunch? We have about two hours and it will take that long to give you a tour," Harry asked, seeing Jamie standing to the side.

"We'd love to if it's not a problem."

"It's not. Dad, could you let the Headmistress know? Jamie, if you guys want you can follow me up to dad's quarters. I need a shower and change into something else and then we can go from there."

Everyone agreed and soon they were in the living room. "I'll be quick. Make yourselves at home."

Harry walked back out in casual robes half an hour later. It was a little crowded in the living room and soon they were making their way through the castle. Harry was carrying Jason and was holding Nora's hand, explaining everything they were seeing. Henry and Sara had seen the castle before, obviously, but for everyone else everything was new. Jason was especially fascinated with the talking portraits. When they got to the Great Hall at the end of the tour Harry noticed a good part of the Gryffindor table was empty at the end by the Head Table. He smiled at Minerva, knowing she had done that on purpose. Nora was mesmerized by the ceiling, and Harry had to guide her to her seat to prevent her from bumping into everything.

Harry led everyone to that section of the table and they all sat down. Sirius, Remus, Severus, Eric and Viktor sat down with them. Harry kept Jason on his lap and Nora was sitting next to him. When the food appeared on the table Harry looked at Jamie who was looking at the table in awe. "I'll show you the kitchen after lunch. We didn't have time before and I'm technically not supposed to know where it is."

"This is a lot of food."

"It's hundreds of elves preparing it. Help yourselves."

Everyone talked about the game and when it was time for dessert Harry excused himself. "I'll be back to get you all at the end. I just want to say hi to my friends, since it's the only time I can while grounded."

Once Harry was out of his seat, still carrying Jason, Jamie looked at Sirius. "He's grounded?"

"Until Monday. He knew we'd allow him to give you all a tour, it's the exception. He is quite correct he will not be allowed to join the party Gryffindor will undoubtedly have."

They watched Harry walk around the Great Hall, talking to his friends and stopping when others wanted to talk to him. "He's as popular as ever," Henry noted.

"Yes he is. He doesn't even realize it most of the time," Severus said.

"I love all this magic stuff," Jamie said. "And he is amazing with children. Look at how easily he is holding Jason and including him in everything."

They all looked at Harry, who was currently flying Jason over the table to Hermione who took him on the other side. They all agreed that Harry had a way with the little boy that seemed almost instinctive. Harry took back Jason a few minutes later and made his way back to their end of the table. "Jamie, you ready to see the kitchen?"

Jamie was immediately out of his seat, while Sirius said he'd show everyone else back to their quarters and to come up when done. Nobody was really interested in the kitchen. The second Harry walked into the kitchen with Jamie, Jamie's mouth dropped open. Harry simply took a seat as one of the elves came over. "Odon, Jamie is my personal chef. Could you show him around the kitchen?" Harry asked the elf.

Odon nodded and soon Jamie was shown everything he could possibly want to see. It took over half an hour but finally Jamie came back with a grin on his face. "This is amazing. We should probably leave, but thank you for showing me."

Harry stood up and smiled. "You're welcome. After seeing the food we had for lunch, do you understand why I wanted a personal chef?"

"I do. It was slightly greasy and while really good it was obvious it was mass produced."

Harry nodded. "I've loved everything you've made so far and I have more energy. I think eating healthier has done that."

"Yes, that's why they say you are what you eat. I must admit I'm slightly jealous you live in a beautiful castle like this."

Harry laughed. "It really is beautiful, but can also be dangerous."

"I can see that. Moving staircases. Sports that could cause death and injury. You still haven't healed yourself have you?"

"I'm truly fine. My fathers have a tendency to overreact. I'll put some bruise balm on and it'll be fine."

"Bruise balm?"

"Yes, it instantly heals bruises. The only ones that might need more applications are the bad ones."

"Can I see it?"

Harry nodded and when they walked into the living room he took the bruise balm from the table and lifted his sleeve, exposing a small bruise. He applied the balm and they watched the bruise disappear.

"Would that work on me?" Jamie asked.

Severus decided to answer. "Yes, it will work on Muggles. Not all potions do but this particular one does. Do you want a jar? We're not allowed to sell it or give it to Muggles but since you work for Harry I don't see a problem since you clearly know about magic."

Jamie nodded and Severus summoned another jar. "I make big batches of this, since Harry seems to always need it."

Thirty minutes later their guests left and Harry sat down on the couch with a sigh before being pushed back up by Severus. "Take off any clothes that are covering bruises. Sirius, help me apply this balm, it'll make it go faster."

Harry took off everything except his pants, after sending his mother and grandmother to a different portrait. Even his legs and lower back had bruises, most of them caused by his fall and connecting with his broom and the ground. Once done he put his trousers and shirt back on and sat on the couch.

"It feels good to sit down," he smiled.

"All your homework done?" Sirius asked.

Harry nodded. "Yes. I won't deny that I'm looking forward to doing nothing this afternoon. Maybe read a book."

Sirius smiled at him. "We all have work to do, but as long as you don't leave these rooms or Severus' rooms you are free to do what you want."

Harry nodded that he had heard and soon he was alone. He sprawled out on the couch and summoned a book, content to stay there the rest of the afternoon. He knew he could read ahead in his classes, and Lily suggested as much, but he wanted to just enjoy the fact that he didn't have to do anything.

The remainder of the weekend passed very calmly for Harry. During extra lessons on Sunday they had Harry fitted for new robes for all the Christmas holiday gatherings he had been invited to, and after that he worked with Sirius to master a few more spells wandlessly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright everyone, that is all for today. I have a surprise for everyone though. I'm sure you have all noticed by now that my personal chef cooks my breakfast and dinner. I have convinced him to cook dinner for everyone in this group once a month. Today, our dinner will be provided by Jamie, so don't be surprised if you all get a plate of food from Dobby. Dobby knows who to give a plate to, so don't take anything from the table until he does. It will take him a couple minutes," Harry said with a smile that Monday. They had just finished Defense practice in the Room of Requirement and were getting ready to head down to dinner.

The announcement was met with much excitement, as everyone had seen the good looking meals Harry had been eating. It turned out Jamie had made a lasagna, and Harry had to admit it was the best lasagna he had ever tasted. He called Dobby to get him seconds, and he noticed most of his friends doing the same.

"Harry, this is amazing," Hermione said with a smile. "Are you sure he can only do this once a month?"

Harry nodded. "I give him a list of who to cook for, and I have no doubt the list might grow so I don't want to overwhelm him. I think this might be the best investment I've ever made."

Up at the Head Table the additional meals did not go unnoticed. "Don't you think it's an odd group that gets these meals?" Sirius asked. "I didn't even know he was friends with Lee."

"Agreed. And they all arrived at dinner at the same time, like they do every Monday. I think they are up to something," Severus said.

"The question is what they are up to and whether we are going to try and find out or not," Remus said. "I vote we trust Harry and not interfere. I don't think he'd do anything dangerous. Hannah, Susan, Ernie and Eric are in that group and they all have an Alliance with House Black. the others are his friends or team mates. I'm not sure it's anything to worry about."

"But if it wasn't against the rules, why wouldn't he tell us?" Sirius asked.

"Either simply because we haven't asked or because he wants to keep some things to himself and not have us know everything?" Remus asked.

"That sounds reasonable. I think maybe we need to keep our ears open, but besides that trust him not to do anything against the rules," Sirius said.

As it turned out, they found it fairly quickly what was going on as Harry took it upon himself to tell them on Tuesday during lessons. "Look, I know you all noticed the extra meals yesterday. We all get together on Mondays to practice and study, and with the various years represented it helps. We aren't breaking any rules, but we don't want to let just anyone in either so we are keeping it secret. I thought it would also be a good way to expand my friend group and make more alliances even amongst those who aren't from a Wizengamot family. I saw the way you were looking yesterday, so to prevent you from spying on us, can you trust me that we aren't breaking any rules?"

Sirius smiled and nodded. "We can do that."

"Thank you. Also, when I was at the Weasleys Bill offered for me to talk to him whenever I need someone closer to my age to talk to. I love you guys but I'm sure you also understand that I'm fifteen and sometimes I need someone to talk to who is not my parent. I want to be able to be open with him, and I also want to be able to talk to Charlie. I've decided to introduce them to House Peverell on Friday afternoon so that I can talk to them using Family Magic so everything and everyone is protected. Do any of you object to that?"

Severus shook his head. "I think it's a good idea. Your friends are your age and don't always understand what you are going through. Bill and Charlie are good men, and while still close to you in age they have also seen more of the world. It would help you to have that kind of friendship outside of Hogwarts with someone close to your age, who also isn't afraid to tell you what they really think instead of just what they think you want to hear."

Harry nodded. "I love my friends but they look to me for leadership and sometimes I need someone else to talk sense into me, or rationalize what I'm thinking or feeling. Charlie and I have gotten along from the moment we met, and I've really started to like Bill as well. They live together, so that makes it convenient to. Besides that, to have a curse breaker as good as Bill who knows everything that's going on can only be helpful in the long run."

Remus smiled. "Good thinking Harry. Have you thought about including Viktor?"

"I have, but I'm not going to right now. I really want someone outside of Hogwarts. Also, I don't think Viktor and I have been together long enough for me to include him but then not include someone like Hermione. Besides, most of what I'll probably talk to Bill and Charlie about is related to Viktor so that could be awkward." Harry gave his fathers a cheeky grin at that.

"Very funny," Sirius said with a mock glare. "So where are you meeting them?"

"I'm apparating to Gringotts and then Black Manor with Dora after lunch on Friday."

"And you were going to mention this to us when?" Remus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm mentioning it now."

"I'm coming with you," Severus said. "You need more protection than just Dora if you're going to Gringotts."

"That's fine. I'll only be there a few minutes anyway."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Friday comes faster than Harry expected and soon he is at Black Manor, in formal robes, waiting for Bill and Charlie. When Dora shows them into Harry's office he stands up with a smile. "Welcome to Black Manor. Have a seat."

"Thank you Lord Black," Bill said.

"For today I am Lord Peverell even though we are at Black Manor. You should have both received a letter from Gringotts, but I'd like to formally welcome you both as sons of House Peverell. Give me a moment to invoke Family Magic so we can speak freely."

Once Harry had invoked the Peverell Family Magic, and they had felt it wrap around the room, he looked back at Bill and Charlie. "I'm assuming you both know this means you can't talk about anything we discuss to anyone else or where anyone might overhear? If you do so anyway I have to come release you. Sirius and Hermione have both already experienced what it means to break Family Magic, and I'm sure you've both been told by your father. While under Peverell Magic, I don't want to stand on formality. I want us to be friends but simply be able to talk freely and protect ourselves while doing so."

"This was a good idea Harry," Bill said. "And we've both experienced the consequences of breaking family magic." Bill grimaced slightly which caused Harry to lift an eyebrow.

"If you must know, we both got the spoon for that. So now that we can talk freely, want to tell us what's going on? We feel like there's a lot you can't talk about."

"There is. I want to be able to talk freely with you guys, and have you guys fully understand what's going on, but it's going to be a long story."

"We have all day," Charlie said.

When Harry had finished recounting his first two years of Hogwarts, Bill stopped him. "That is absolutely insane. We had heard a good bit of that through Ron, but to actually hear everything makes it even more unbelievable. How did your guardians react?"

"I got lectured, but I prevented punishment by acknowledging what I did wrong and could have done differently."

"Smart," Charlie laughed. "Alright, continue with year three and four. After that we'll get into everything that is not Hogwarts related."

It was almost time for dinner when Harry stopped talking. Dobby had kept their teapot filled throughout, which was good for Harry after all the talking he had done. When he stopped, and Charlie and Bill knew everything that wasn't protected by an oath or Black family magic, they simply stared at Harry. Suddenly Bill stood up and pulled Harry out of his chair and into a strong hug.

"No fifteen year old should have a life story like that. I want to shake you for all the stupid stuff you've done and hug you for all the things you've been through. I fully understand how much you really need someone to talk to, someone who knows everything. Don't worry, we'll be here for you."

Harry smiled. "Thank you. I'm assuming you are both staying for dinner?"

"If it's possible. We wouldn't mind some good home cooking. Don't you have to be back at the school?" 

"I told papa we'd probably eat here. He already went back to Hogwarts, Dora will apparate me back. As long as I'm back by curfew it's fine. Jamie is cooking so it will definitely be good."

Harry ended the family magic and soon they found themselves in the kitchen, where Jamie was putting the finishing touches on dinner. Harry had warned him there might be two extra, and when Jamie saw them he pointed to the table. "It will be ready in a few minutes. Have a seat."

The three young men sat down at the table where four place settings were already waiting for them. Soon they were joined by Dora who smiled at them. "Done talking?"

Harry nodded. "We can't talk about it because of family magic, but yes we are."

"Good. I need you to approve the holiday calendar before you leave so I can finish sending out RSVP's."

"Alright. How bad is it?"

"It's busy between Christmas and New Year's gatherings. You will have plenty of time for the amusement park, ski trip and cleaning out Godric's Hollow. Most of the parties are in the evenings, with only a few luncheons."

"Harry, when do you get to be a teenager?" Charlie asked.

"At Hogwarts I have Friday night, Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon free. I have to do homework in that time, but I suppose it's something a normal teenager does. Saturday mornings are for Quidditch so that's fun. We have an agreement not to do homework on Friday night so that's always a fun night."

"So we are keeping you from a fun evening?" Bill asked, looking concerned.

"No, you aren't. You are friends so it's fun. Friday afternoons are for Lordship stuff so in reality you saved me from a mostly boring afternoon of letters and invitations. I'm already getting invitations for Easter break, it's insane."

"If you ever need a distraction, let us know," Charlie said. "We are always willing to provide one."

Harry grinned. "Usually I go find the twins and cause some mischief, but you might be a safer option."

Dora laughed. "You might be right about that, but Sirius deserves a little payback for all the mischief he caused growing up."

Jamie came over with dinner and was promptly invited to join them. He usually ate after finishing cooking, since Jules took care of the kids when he worked, and that way she didn't have to worry about keeping food warm for him. Jamie joined them and soon they were all enjoying the food. "So how different are pranks at a magical school?"

Harry grinned. "They are much better because so much more is possible. Imagine causing everyone's hair to turn a different color with one small potion."

Jamie's eyes grew wide. "You can do that? I can't imagine the professors being happy about that."

"It's about not getting caught, and the few times you do get caught the punishment is worth the fun. Fred and George play small pranks every day and rarely ever get caught. Fairly regularly they play bigger pranks that affect more people, and I often help with those. It's more important not to get caught with those."

"With three fathers at school I'm sure that's not easy."

"They don't say anything unless the Headmistress feels it's deserving of a letter home or one of them catches me. It's often still worth it. You know it's not the safest out there in the Wizarding World right now and we all need a little fun at times."

"Agreed," Bill said. "As annoying as the twins can be, they do always liven things up. So I heard you saw your first Quidditch match last week Jamie?"

Soon talk changed to Quidditch and everything magical Jamie had seen. Harry truly enjoyed the evening and they talked for a while even after dinner had ended. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end, and after approving the holiday schedule Dora apparated Harry back to Hogwarts. Instead of heading to the dorms Harry went to his dad's quarters. He wanted to explore the Chamber on Sunday instead of lessons and was planning to convince his fathers it was a good idea.

"Hi dad, where are Moony and papa?"

"Moony is asleep, he was tired. I'm not sure about Severus."

"Oh. Well what would you say to going down to the Chamber instead of lessons on Sunday?"

Sirius rose his eyebrow. "And you want Severus here because he would agree to go down and help you convince me?"

"Well you can't deny he would love a chance to explore the Chamber. We haven't really seen all of it and you have to admit it's fascinating."

"Go get Severus."

Harry grinned and ran to Severus' rooms, finding him reading on the couch. "Papa, can you come in here for a minute?"

Severus nodded and followed Harry, seeing excitement in his face and wondering what was going on. "Papa, I want to go to the Chamber Sunday instead of lessons."

"I see," Severus said, trying to keep his face blank but excitement was obvious in his eyes. "What do you think Sirius?"

"I think you both want to go and I'm going regardless."

"Good guess dad. I'm sure Moony wouldn't pass up an opportunity to do some research and I have no doubt going to the Chamber fits that description. So we're going?" Harry asked.

Sirius sighed. "Severus?"

"I think it's a wonderful idea. After breakfast?"

"Fine. But I expect excellent work during lessons the rest of the week to make up for the missed day."

"Yes! Thanks dad! Thanks papa!" Harry said in excitement before running out. He had just enough time to make it to his dorm before curfew and he wanted to spend time with his friends.

"He played you Sirius," James said with a grin,

"I'm well aware. I knew if I said no outright he would go to Severus and ask him. I knew I'd lose the argument so might as well give in. I'm not saying I don't want to see the Chamber but I'm not as fascinated with it as everyone else is."

"I can't imagine he built that whole chamber just to house a Basilisk," Severus said. "There has to be more down there, something he wanted protected."

"I agree with Severus," Mr Potter said. "The rumor was that it's where Slytherin's private chambers were, but as nobody could find it nobody knows if that rumor was true."

Severus' eyes lit up. "If that's true one day might not be enough."

Lily laughed. "There's the Severus I remember. First you need to see if it's down there or not."

"Spoilsport. I'm going back to my book and imagine all the wonderful things we might find on Sunday."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Sirius, hurry up!" Harry said impatiently. They were waiting on Sirius to go to the Chamber and he was dragging his feet. Harry had not been allowed to tell his friends where he was going for safety reasons, but he hoped he would have something cool to tell them when he got back. "We're leaving without you!"

Harry started walking out of the living room, winking at James as he did so. He had to hold back a laugh when Sirius came running out of his bedroom. "I'm coming! I couldn't find my sneakers, and I didn't want to wear my nicer shoes because they might get dirty."

"I think that means we need another discussion on organization?" Remus asked sternly.

"No, it's alright," Sirius said before sticking his tongue out to the portraits who were all trying not to laugh.

"Hmm. So far it hasn't affected any of my things but if it gets to that point I will say something. Let's go."

Soon Harry had led them into the bathroom and they had cast charms to prevent anyone from entering. Once they had all entered the Chamber and were in the main room Harry looked around. "I ran down that way, but this way is where the Basilisk came from. I think we'd have more luck going this way first."

"Go ahead and lead the way Harry. Wand out, you never know what we might encounter," Severus said. Harry nodded and starts walking down the tunnel. He's walking slowly, looking for anything out of the ordinary. They've been walking for a couple minutes when Harry notices a slight changing in the bricks.

"I think this might be something. See how the brick changes slightly?"

Everyone pointed their wands at the bricks to light up the wall and Remus nodded. "I agree, the bricks are different. You should try parseltongue to open it, since everything else here is protected with parseltongue."

**Open. **

**Open Slytherin Chamber**. Harry jumped back when the wall started moving. "Well he sure wasn't the most creative."

They watched in fascination as what appeared to be another tunnel appeared. "Harry, remember the curse detection spells we taught you?" Severus asked.

"Yes. Want me to use a transfigured bird with those spells and send it down there to see if there's anything harmful?"

"That's a good idea."

Harry took a tissue out of his pocket and transfigured it into a bird before casting curse detection spells on it and sending it down the tunnel. They heard the bird hit something, but weren't sure what. Harry looked at his dad in question. "I think we should send another one. If it doesn't find anything it will come back."

Three birds later the bird finally came back unharmed and they all sighed in relief. "I suppose it's good we didn't go down ourselves first."

Severus simply gave Harry an incredulous look before starting his way down the tunnel. Harry made it to the end first and looked around in amazement. They had ended in what looked like a small living room. It was round with a couch in the middle. Along the walls were several doors and Harry immediately started exploring.

The first door opened into an old fashioned bathroom. Harry didn't linger and quickly opened the second door. His fathers were behind him, just as eager to discover more. "Bedroom. Boring."

The third door caused Severus to gasp and push past Harry. Behind that door was a potions lab, with perfectly preserved ingredients lining the walls. Harry rolled his eyes and opened the final door which turned out to be an office. Along the walls were shelves upon shelves filled with books while a massive desk dominated the middle of the room. Harry, Sirius and Remus immediately started perusing the shelves, noticing quite a few rare books.

"This looks to be written in parseltongue," Harry said, pulling out a journal looking book. He started reading it and his eyes widened. "It's Slytherin's personal journals."

Remus looked wide eyed at the book Harry was holding. Harry carefully took it to the desk and sat down with it. "This is amazing. If I could translate this all I'm sure it would give us a lot of information."

"What are you three doing?" Severus asked from the doorway. "I love his lab. I can't believe we found his quarters."

"Do you all think it's safe to keep all this here?" Harry asked. "The only other person who can enter is Voldemort, but who knows if he might try."

"The only other place to put it is Gringotts," Severus said. "There's a portrait in the lab that has something to say to you though, which is why I came in here."

Harry's eyes widened and he followed Severus into the lab. When he turned to look at the wall he noticed a portrait with four figures in it. "It's about time someone made their way down here," one of them said. Harry simply stared at the with his mouth dropped open.

"Close your mouth boy. According to your father you are the one who is able to enter my Chamber. I'm Salazar Slytherin. This here are Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff. Your father assures me you are worthy of entrance into these chambers. Only one belonging to all four Houses can enter these rooms."

"I was sorted into all four Houses. Papa was Head of Slytherin but he's now just the Potions Master as he didn't have time for both when he got me and claimed his Lordship. Dad is the History professor and Deputy Head of Gryffindor and Moony is the Defense professor and Head of Gryffindor. They are all three my father. My father died when I was fifteen months old, along with my mother."

"Well then you are the only one alive who can enter these specific rooms," Godric said. "Now tell us what's been going on at the school."

"Do you have portraits anywhere else?"

"No, we do not. The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw quarters were changed into other things and nobody realized they destroyed those portraits in the process, so we've all been here the whole time."

"Can you live in a portrait outside of Hogwarts?"

"Yes, we can, just like any other portrait."

"If I created another portrait for you all at Black Manor, would you be willing to go there as well so I could talk to you? We are only down here for the day and I doubt I'll be allowed down here without one of them."

"You are correct," Sirius said sternly.

"That would be acceptable," Salazar said. "It's been too long since I had a decent conversation besides these three. Now tell us what's been going on."

Harry sighed and summoned a stool. "It's a long story and I can only tell you what I know and what's been happening in the past few years."

"Before you begin, you just did that wandless and nonverbal," Helga said.

"What? Oh, yeah. I did. Anyway, I'll tell you a story."

Harry started to tell everything, once again, that he could tell. He left out everything that wasn't public knowledge, unsure if the portrait would keep quiet. He knew it would only be in Black Manor and here, but he wasn't going to risk it.

"So you are my Heir?" Salazar asked.

Harry nodded. "By right of conquest. I'm the Gryffindor Heir by birth."

"I see. Is there a Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw Heir?" 

Harry shook his head. "No, there isn't. At some point we might be able to do a heritage test on the most likely candidates and see if anyone is, but right now the focus is on preventing Voldemort from getting too strong."

"I see. And your fathers are keeping you in line better? If you had been at Hogwarts in our day you would have been expelled long ago."

"None of that would have happened to begin with. Trust me, if I could go back I would not do any of that stuff."

"Good. So you are very powerful, both magically and politically, and you have been training accordingly. There is also a prophecy that indicates you have to be the one to defeat this Dark Lord. Does that sum it up?" Salazar asked.

"Pretty much. I'd love to talk more with you four. I imagine you are full of information. Dad, can we do Sunday lessons at Black Manor from now on?" 

"I don't see why not. In a week it's Halloween so let's start that after Halloween."

"Perfect. Salazar, the journals in your office, they are in parseltongue, aren't they?"

"Yes they are."

"If I start translating them, do you have one you recommend I start with?"

"The first one," Salazar said with a raised eyebrow.

Harry rolled his eyes. "I'm going to look more at all the books. I will make sure you get a portrait in Black Manor before the day is over. My parents and grandparents are the only other portraits there. You will only get one in my office, we don't want everyone to be able to see you. It would cause too many questions."

Salazar raised his eyebrow as Sirius, Remus and Harry walked back to the study. "He's a determined one isn't he."

Severus laughed. "He is, but he is a good kid. He just has too much on his shoulders for a fifteen year old so half the time he acts younger than fifteen and half the time he acts older. While in his office you'll see him when he's in full Lordship mode and he truly is an adult then. I'm going to assume you don't want me removing any of these ingredients?"

"You're a Potions Master. Unfortunately I can't use those ingredients so do with them as you wish. However, my journals have a few interesting Potions in it that aren't published anywhere else, so you might want to leave everything here under the charms so you have the ingredients when he's finished translating. Since he's the only one alive who can access these rooms it's safe."

"Good. So I have to ask. Did you truly hate Muggleborns?"

"No, I did not. I just felt that our world should remain separate from the Muggles, and that Muggleborns should be placed with Wizarding Families so they could be fully integrated into our world. By leaving them with Muggles we risked exposure to our World. I felt that should happen as soon as a Muggleborn was discovered, so that any accidental magic could be controlled as well."

Severus nodded. "That's not bad thinking. I think Muggleborns should at least attend a Wizarding primary school. The Ministry has several cases of accidental magic they have to fix every year, most often at a Muggle primary school. That might be something for when the war is over."

"I agreed with Salazar, and I think a Wizarding Primary school could be the answer. Parents of Muggleborns can be given classes on how to handle magic at home," Godric said.

Severus nodded. "I'm going to go see what they are up to in the study. I imagine we'll head back up soon as it's about lunch time and we didn't bring food."

Severus was right and soon they were making their way upstairs. "I'm going to Black Manor this afternoon to get the portrait taken care of," Harry said.

"What happened to asking permission? You didn't ask for Friday and you're not asking now," Sirius asked.

Harry shrugged. "I didn't think you'd object."

"I'd still appreciate you asking. You can't go alone and you should not just assume we can go with you. Besides that you are a student and the Headmistress has to be informed when you leave the grounds."

"Oh. Guess I've not been doing that."

"When have you ever left without one of us?" Severus asked suspiciously. "We have always informed her when we've taken you off grounds."

"No reason," Harry said calmly. He was not about to admit that he had left the grounds the day before to go to Hogsmeade. He had been out of chocolate and had snuck out with Viktor. "I didn't know you had informed her."

"Hmmm I don't believe you but alright," Severus said. "I'd hope you are smart enough not to sneak out of the castle."

"So are you guys coming this afternoon or should I ask Dobby to take me?"

"We're coming," Sirius said. "I would not mind an afternoon away from here."

They had reached the second floor and quickly took down the wards. "Good. Then I'm going to lunch and we can leave afterwards," Harry said before taking off towards the Great Hall to meet his friends.

Sirius, Severus and Remus all shared a look. "He has definitely been sneaking out," Sirius said.

"He has, but we can't prove it. We do need to have a talk with him about asking permission to go places, not just assuming. It's not as much about supervision as us needing to know when he's gone should something happen. If he's just going to Black Manor he's safe there, but on Friday he had planned to go to Gringotts with just Dora. I have no doubt he can protect himself, but what if something had happened at Diagon and we didn't know he was there?" Severus said.

"I'm tempted to let him know a consequence next time he doesn't ask first. It's about safety, not about trying to control him, but he doesn't seem to understand that. Voldemort is back, while last year he wasn't yet. He has a body, he's gathering followers. It's not safe for him out there," Sirius replied. They had almost reached the Great Hall and knew they'd have to continue the discussion later. "Let's all go to Black Manor this afternoon and we can talk to him then."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry, have a seat," Sirius said. There were in the kitchen at Black Manor after Harry had arranged for the portrait in his office and had walked into the kitchen to get a drink.

Harry sat down and looked at his dad, apprehension clear on his face.

"Us wanting to know where you are isn't because we are trying to control you. You know Voldemort has a physical body again, he's no longer just a spirit. He is gathering followers. He is getting stronger. You might have a lot of allies but you have just as many enemies. You are an incredible wizard, but if you were ambushed you would likely be outnumbered. The reason we want you to ask us before leaving Hogwarts is because we want to make sure you have one of us with you. There is safety in numbers, as you well know. You should ask instead of assume because we might not be able to just leave. Do you understand that?"

"I do."

"Good, because you have not been doing that. I am officially restricting you to Hogwarts unless you have specific permission from me, Remus or Severus and one of us is with you. If you break this restriction, you will get grounded. I am not doing this to control you. I am doing this to keep you safe."

"That's not fair! I am allowed to leave the school if I want to!"

"As a Lord, yes you are. However, the school rules state you have to notify the Headmistress and since you are underage the Headmistress has to inform your guardian on file which is me. As that guardian, I'm adding the additional restriction that you have to ask one of us. We will not say no if you have a valid reason for leaving and one of us can come with you. We know you have to leave at times, and we aren't trying to restrict you, simply keep you safe when you do leave grounds. If making you upset with me because of a rule keeps you safe, I will do it every time Harry. Your safety is paramount."

"It's not fair."

"Other students are not allowed to leave at all, so you still have privileges others don't. Now are you going to obey this or do I need to start off by grounding you to show how serious I am?"

"Fine, I'll ask one of you before leaving from now on."

"And if we say no or tell you a different day or time, you will accept that."

"Fine," Harry said before stomping out of the room and slamming the door to his office behind him. Jamie looked at Sirius with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you going to let him get away with that? My children would get a smacked bottom if they ever slammed the door like that."

Sirius sighed. "He has a bit of a temper at times. He's in there with several portraits that will talk sense into him. When he gets like that it's sometimes best to just let him be for a bit."

"I'm sure you know him best. Are you all staying here for dinner?"

Sirius nodded. "We will. Thank you."

Harry had sat down in his desk chair, attitude radiating off him in weaves. The founders shared a look before Rowena gave Harry a stern look. "What has you in such an attitude?"

"Dad just told me that I'm not allowed to leave Hogwarts without him, Moony or papa and I have to ask one of them for permission first. I'm a Lord, school rules say I'm allowed to leave whenever I need to and all I have to do is let the Headmistress know. Now he said I have to ask one of them for permission. It's not fair!"

"Darling, he's doing that to keep you safe."

"It's still not fair. I should be able to go out."

"And in normal times he would probably allow it but these aren't normal times, are they?"

"No, they aren't."

"Are you sure you're mad at your dad?"

"No."

"Who are you mad at?"

Harry sighed. "Voldemort. Because of him I can't be normal and do normal things a Lord can do and a teenager can do."

"Stop pouting," Salazar said. "You can't change the situation but you can make the best of it. I'm sure your fathers would not say no unless they couldn't come with you. Stop whining like a little child and go apologize to your dad."

"I'm not pouting or whining. And who says I have anything to apologize for?"

"The fact that you stomped in here and flung yourself into that chair after slamming the door is pretty good indication."

"Stay out of this," Harry said before picking up a letter from his inbox and pretending to read it.

"Harry James Potter! You apologize to Mr Slytherin this instant or I will go to the living room and inform your papa that you are in need of an attitude adjustment. You are acting like a toddler because there is a war starting and you can't do what you want because others are trying to keep you safe. Now you apologize or I will get your papa," Lily scolded.

Harry simply glared at his mother before turning back to pretending to read. He was in a bad mood and just wanted to be left alone, which was hard with portraits around. It didn't take long for Severus to walk into the office. "I hear you need an attitude adjustment. Want to talk about it?"

Harry sighed and looked up. "I just wish there was no war and I could be a normal teenager while doing the Lordship stuff on the side. I want the privileges of being a Lord without the restrictions caused by the war. I know I have a terrible attitude but I'm just mad at everything."

"So you're not mad at Sirius for placing a restriction on you, you're mad the restriction is necessary?"

"I guess that's an easy way of putting it."

"Harry, we all wish everything was different. We wish all you had to worry about was school, homework, grades and Quidditch. That you could play pranks and hang out with your friends. That you could sneak out of school with your friends without your life being at risk. But no matter how much we wish for that, it's not the way it is. We are here to make sure that while you are preparing for the war, you also have enough time to be that normal teenager. But that is not possible without some restrictions. You can't get mad at those who are trying to keep you safe."

"I know. I'm sorry." Harry sighed. He knew he had been throwing a tantrum like a small child.

"How about you apologize to Salazar and Sirius and then you come out and have some tea with us? I think Dobby made some chocolate biscuits."

"I'm sorry Salazar. I shouldn't have snapped at you and I was rude."

"You are forgiven. Go be a teenager for the rest of the afternoon."

Harry got up from his chair and walked to the door. He expected Severus to swat his bottom, but he didn't to Harry's surprise. He found Sirius still sitting in the kitchen and hugged him from behind. "I'm sorry for acting like a brat. I'm mad the restriction is necessary, not at the fact that you placed the restriction. Papa made me see that I shouldn't snap at you when you are just trying to keep me safe and trying to let me be a normal teenager as much as possible. Want to come have tea and then maybe fly together?"

"Thank you for the apology. I wish it could be different. And I'd love to go flying. Just so you know, the next time you stomp out and slam the door I will follow you and let my displeasure at the rudeness be known on your bottom. Jamie actually suggested he would do that to his kids and I can't say I think it's a bad idea."

"I know. And Jamie, stop giving my dad ideas." Harry grinned at Jamie before walking after his dad to the living room, where Severus and Remus were already pouring tea.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

It was Halloween and Harry was in a terrible mood. He had truly gotten to know his parents and was more angry at their death than he had been in previous years because he now actually knew what he had lost. Finally Severus had dragged Harry down the hall and to his quarters and sat him on the couch when he saw Harry close to snapping.

"Harry, I know today is hard. It's hard on all of us. Is there anything that can make it better?"

"Voldemort getting what he deserves. Besides that, no."

"How about if we go to the Room of Requirement and you work off some steam?"

"What about classes?"

"If you keep going to classes all that's going to happen is you ending up with a million lines and several detentions," Severus said wrily. "Come on, let's go."

Working off steam is exactly what Harry did until they had to go to the feast. It was a requirement for everyone to attend, but Harry was much calmer than he had been. "Thanks papa. That really helped." 

Severus put an arm around Harry's shoulder as they walked. "You're welcome. Anytime you are in a mood like that, come find us and we'll help you. It's what we're here for."

Harry joined his friends at the feast and smiled at them. "Sorry for my attitude earlier."

"Don't worry about it Harry, we know today is difficult for you," Hermione said with a soft smile.

"I would have hexed you if you got too bad," Cedric grinned.

Harry laughed. "Thanks guys. So want to see who can eat the most sweets without getting sick?" 

"That sounds like a bad idea," Alex commented while reaching for a chocolate frog.

"Maybe, but it's a good way to enjoy the Halloween Feast. It's the only time the professors let us eat as much candy as we want."

"I'm in," Dudley said with a grin.

Soon everyone else agreed as well and with a smile at Fred and George Harry popped fudge into his mouth. Everyone followed soon, but instead of teenagers soon seven chickens were sitting on the benches. Harry, Fred and George burst out laughing while Viktor, Alex, Hermione, Cedric, Neville, Lee and Dudley squaked indignantly. Luna simply sat there smiling, holding the toffee she had in her hand. Nobody questioned why she hadn't eaten it. It only took a minute before they changed back and another five seconds for Viktor to cuff Harry on the head and Lee and Cedric to do the same to Fred and George. "I think they worked Fred," Harry grinned. "Sorry guys, we needed guinea pigs."

"That felt odd," Neville said. "It didn't hurt but it was an odd feeling."

"Mr Potter and Misters Weasley, I assume that was the only prank we should expect tonight?" Professor asked from behind Harry.

"Yes ma'am," George said.

"Good. I'd hate to ban you from all the candy for the remainder of the night."

As soon as she was out of hearing Harry leaned across the table. "You removed the candies from the Head Table, right?"

Fred nodded. "We decided it would be a bad idea. We need to test them first on someone else. I think we'd get in more trouble if they found out it was experimental than if it was a tested product."

Harry sighed in relief. "Good. We have quite a few people we can test it on that don't have the authority to wallop our bums."

"That's always preferable," George said with a straight face.

"How do you have time to plan with them?" Dudley asked. "I never see you, you're always busy!"

"I make time for pranks. I know I'm busy but I'll see all of you over break, and at least we still have Friday nights."

"I must admit I probably take up half his free time," Viktor said. "We should include you all more with everyone this busy."

Alex shrugged. "I see Harry every night. I suppose it's the benefit of sharing a room."

"You're a wonderful roommate. You know when to shut up and when I want to talk."

"Thank you. You accepted the Christmas invite you received from my family, right?"

Harry nodded. "Of course. Wouldn't miss it."

"Good. You're the only one invited who is even remotely close to my age. I would be bored without you there."

"I made Dora put it on the calendar first. We had to turn someone else down because of it but I can't remember who. Friends come first. Now who's up for more candy?"

Harry ended up going to bed with a stomach ache, and wasn't surprised when Dobby showed up with a stomach soother for both him and Alex which they swallowed with matching grins. Despite the bad start, he had enjoyed the evening with his friends and it had truly lifted his spirits. In six weeks it would be the Christmas holidays and he had to admit he was looking forward to a break in schoolwork.

AN: Up next, Christmas Cheer!


	51. Christmas Cheer

Chapter 51: Christmas Cheer

"Harry, what are you doing?" Sirius asked in confusion. Harry was face down on the couch in the living room at Black Manor.

"Nothing. It's Christmas holidays and I have nothing planned for today."

"You're just going to lay on that couch?"

"Yes. I'm exhausted from exams and want to do nothing."

"Alright. Dinner is in an hour. Enjoying your nothing."

Harry remained face down on the couch, and when Sirius went to call him for dinner, Harry was fast asleep. He smiled before carefully lifting Harry up and carrying him up to his room. When he walked into the kitchen he smiled at Severus and Remus. "He's asleep. I found him on the couch and took him to bed. He's exhausted from exams."

"Hmm. And from staying up way too late," Remus said. "He's been hanging out with his friends a lot lately which is good. I know they've allowed him to be a normal teenager as much as possible the past few weeks."

"Well good. He has a luncheon tomorrow so we'll let him sleep as long as possible," Sirius said.

The following day Harry didn't wake up until eleven, at which point Dobby woke him up and made him get ready quickly. He knew it was simply the start of many holiday gatherings, and he was ready for Christmas Eve when he got to celebrate the holidays with his family. Jamie and his family, and Lord Peterson's family would be joining them and then they were all staying the night to spend Christmas Day with them as well. Harry was excited, and knew that celebrating Christmas with little children would be a new experience. He was excited, and he knew he had bought way too many gifts for them. He wanted them to have the experiences he was never able to have until he got older. He had also spoiled all the others, and fully expected more than a few stern looks from the adults. Most of his shopping had been done by owl order or by way of Dora, as Harry been unable to sneak more than two trips to Hogsmeade.

On Christmas Eve Day Harry had breakfast with Amelia Bones, to discuss a few things related to the DMLE and Harry's special apparition license that was scheduled for after the holidays. When he arrived home he immediately changed into comfortable clothes and went flying. He just wanted to relax and knew that was the best way to do it. Severus, who had escorted Harry, didn't say anything and simply let Harry be.

The sound of excited children's voices had Harry looking down. He noticed Jamie, Jules, Nora and Jason walking towards the front door and he quickly flew down to meet them. "Jamie, would you allow me to take your children on a broom ride? We'll go slow and stay close to the ground."

"I trust you but if anything happens to them I will hold you responsible. Nora, would you like to go first?"

Nora was already running towards Harry, who caught her and then helped her sit in front of him on the broom. "Now hold on tight. If you want to go slower or lower, just let me know, alright?"

Nora nodded and soon Harry was slowly flying around the yard. Nora was screaming in excitement the whole time, and Sirius, Remus and Severus came out to see what was going on. When it was Jason's turn he wanted to go faster and Harry went as fast as he dared with the three year old. He made sure not to fly longer with Jason than he had with Nora, and soon the group was making their way inside.

"Thank you Harry," Jules said. "They've been talking about flying brooms ever since they saw you play."

"When I'm home for the summer I can take them more often. It's too cold out now to be out long. It is pretty amazing to be up in the air like that. If you ever want to go up, just let one of us know and we can take you. Even Dora can take you."

"Thank you. Do you know if there's anything I can do to help?"

Harry shook his head. "No. Dobby is taking care of all the food today and tomorrow to give Jamie a break as well. He would probably be offended if we helped. Elves take great pride in their work, and Dobby wants nothing more than to make me happy. Let's go into the living room, I'm sure it's about tea time."

"Actually, it's nap time for Jason. Would you mind showing us the room we'll be staying in?"

"No nap!" Jason said loudly.

Harry grinned and picked the little boy up. "Are you sure? I'd love to take a nap myself. How about I show you your room and then we both lay down for a bit? I'm tired from all that flying."

Jason shook his head but held onto Harry anyway when he started walking up the stairs. "I gave you a connecting room with Jason and Nora. They are sharing, I assumed that was easier for you. We have plenty of rooms so if you don't think they should share we can have Nora stay in the room on the other side of yours."

Jules smiled. "They are fine sharing. I think they'll like it. Do you have a toddler bed for Jason?"

"We do. We weren't sure what Nora slept on?"

"She's in a regular size bed now."

"Alright that's what we assumed. Here it is. Through that door is the bathroom and your room is on the other side. Feel free to put your stuff there. There's plenty of towels and toiletries in the bathroom, as well as bath toys and children's products, but if you need anything simply call for Dobby. There's mattress pads on both children's beds, but if you need either cleaned just call for Dobby. He'll have it done in two seconds using magic, so it's much easier."

Jules nodded. Nora occasionally wet the bed when in a strange place so she was glad to know what to do if it happened. She noticed the room was in neutral colors, but the beds were definitely done for the kids. Jason's covers had dragons on it, while Nora's bed was done in mermaids. Jules didn't fail to notice that they moved. "Alright Jason, let's put on pajamas and you can take a nap."

Jason shook his head and clung to Harry. Harry looked at Jules in question and she nodded, unsure what he wanted to do. Harry waved his hand and Jason's bed got bigger, before waving his hand again and Jason being changed into pajamas. Harry was suddenly wearing pajama pants and a tshirt as well. "Come on buddy. I need a nap and I don't like being alone so why don't you keep me company. You don't have to sleep, just stay here with me?"

Jason nodded and soon they were both under the covers. Jules looked at Jamie and they decided Harry had it covered so they left with Nora. Two hours later Sirius and Jamie went upstairs to check on them, and Sirius immediately summoned the camera and took a picture. There on the bed was Harry, fast asleep, with a deeply sleeping Jason next to him. Jason had his head on Harry's chest and an arm around him, while Harry's left arm was around Jason. "I don't think Harry was joking when he said he needed a nap." 

Sirius shook his head as they backed out of the room. "He's been really busy, as I'm sure you've noticed. Tomorrow he has nothing, then on boxing day the Dursleys are coming over. Dora has gone home to be with her family tonight but they are coming for dinner tomorrow, as they are technically family. Then the day after boxing day we have a dinner with the Royal Family. The day after that we are going on our ski trip, so he'll definitely be able to relax then. If they aren't up in an hour we'll wake them up."

"Is Harry hosting any gatherings?"

"No, he's not. Once he got his holiday schedule there was nowhere to fit it in, so he's meeting with many people separately. Plus he'll see everyone at all these other things. Severus was invited to all of them as well, so he's never alone, and his friend Susan Bones is Heir to her family so she's at most of them as well. His friend Hannah is Heir to her family as well, but her father doesn't want her to be tied down to too many gatherings. She goes to some but not all."

"At least he's not alone, but I'm sure he has many more responsibilities than those girls." They had arrived back in the living room and smiled at the others. "Fast asleep. Sirius took a picture."

"Naptime is usually a big fight. He's at the age where he really doesn't need one every day, but we know tonight and tomorrow will be busy. I need to remember to thank Harry later," Jules said with a smile.

"Oh, I think it was selfish on Harry's part. It gave him an excuse to take a nap," Sirius laughed. "And Jamie, yes he has more responsibilities than any other Lord or Heir. It's why we do things like ski trips and family holidays. It allows him to be a kid. Does anyone know when Henry is supposed to get here?"

"He sent a note that they are running late," Severus said. "Eric had gotten into trouble over his Potions grade and Sara had him re-brewing a potion he had failed this morning. It took longer than expected."

"You failed him?" Remus asked. "I haven't had time to look at the Gryffindor grades yet."

"No, but he's close to it. I don't think Potions will be his thing. He needs to get in the habit of asking for help. If he went to the All-House Common Room there would be plenty of students who would glad to help him. I mentioned that in my note on his report card as well."

"If I failed Potions you'd ground me. I'm sure Eric is too," Harry said while walking into the room. He still looks a little bit sleepy but mostly awake.

"If you failed Potions you'd be grounded until my lab, both classroom and private, were sparkling clean and you had re-brewed every potion I'd ever taught you. Especially considering you have private lessons. And yes, Eric is grounded until he's caught up in the class."

Harry nodded and poured himself a cup of tea. "I was wondering why he hadn't sent me any letters. Jason is still asleep but he'll likely wake up soon."

Jules nodded and stood up. "I'll get him changed. Thank you Harry."

While Jules was out of the room Harry snapped his fingers and was dressed in casual robes again, causing Sirius to roll his eyes. "Too lazy to go change the normal way?"

"Absolutely. Plus my tea would be cold if I did that."

It didn't take much longer for Henry, Sara, Eric and Lisa to arrive. Eric and Harry immediately commiserated over having parents, while Lisa just rolled her eyes and went to play with Nora. "I can't believe dad got that angry over a stupid prank!" Eric said. He was referring to the prank where Eric and his friends had found a spell that made everyone say the opposite of what they meant. Unfortunately, instead of hitting their intended target it had hit Professor Vector instead. She had been furious and the three boys had ended up with the Headmistress, who promptly called their parents.

"How much trouble were you in?"

"Well I'm already grounded because of Potions, so dad spanked me. It was a prank and she easily reversed it!"

"Maybe if you focused more on school and less on causing mischief you'd be passing all your classes," Henry said with a pointed look.

"I should be able to do both!"

"You can if you plan your time wisely," Harry said with a grin. "If you'd like, I can help you work out a study schedule when we get back to school. If you follow that schedule you'll have plenty of time to have fun as well."

"You'd do that?"

"Of course. The only rule is that you are not allowed to prank me, and nothing dangerous or that borders on bullying."

"Deal."

"Harry James! You are a Prefect. You should be discouraging this!" Henry said.

"Right now I'm on holiday. Besides, don't you want him to pass his classes?"

"Yes, while staying out of trouble."

"He's eleven. Trouble is his middle name. You can't expect him to do nothing besides studying, and he is much better behaved than some students in his year. All the Prefects meet with the Heads of House at the end of the semester and discuss what students we think are trouble. Eric's name didn't even come up and neither did his friends. Apparently I've been on that list since my first semester, so I don't think you have anything to worry about."

Severus laughed. "You have been, and I wasn't even the one to put you on it. Henry, compared to Harry here, Eric has been an angel. You were only called to the school once. That's not all that unusual. If Harry had had parents his first year, they would have been called the first week. The Weasley twins had their parents called the third day of their first year."

"The third day? If I had gotten a call the third day, Eric wouldn't have been able to sit down for a week. Fine, I won't interfere as long as his grades improve."

Lisa just shook her head. "It's not that hard to stay out of trouble."

"You've always been a goody two shoes. Do you even remember the last time you got spanked?"

"I just don't see the need to break the rules."

"Alright, it's Christmas, no arguing," Harry laughed. "Everyone is different. My friend Hermione never broke any rules until after she became friends with us after Halloween our first year. She's one of the most amazing people I know. Even now she rarely ever purposely breaks a rule. My boyfriend doesn't break the rules either. Everyone is different. Now I think dinner is about ready."

"Are they in Ravenclaw?" Lisa asked.

"Hermione is a Gryffindor, Viktor is Ravenclaw. Not all students who follow the rules go to Ravenclaw. Professor Flitwick, who is their Head of House, is very strict. Remus is now Head of Gryffindor and he's strict as well, there's much less rule breaking in Gryffindor now. Severus was Head of Slytherin and we never saw them getting in trouble, and when they did they always seemed very subdued for a few days after. What House you are in does not determine whether you follow rules or not. You are placed there based on personality."

"I want to be in Ravenclaw."

"Then you tell the Hat that, but the Hat will place you where you belong. It's never wrong unless someone convinces it to change its mind."

"What if I don't like the House it picks?"

"You will be placed in the House that fits you best. You will be able to have friends in other Houses as well, so if you make friends before the sorting don't worry about not seeing them. However, your House is your home for seven years so as long as you do your best to stay loyal to your House and make friends there, I don't see it being an issue. Every House has its good and bad parts, nowhere is perfect. All the Heads of House are good, and with the All House Common Room you'll be able to make friends with everyone. Even if you just want to do homework with your classmates while there, it's possible."

"I'm hoping to be in Ravenclaw."

"And that's good, but if you're not you'll still have a great time at Hogwarts. And should you ever feel the need to break a rule, come find me and I'll give you the same tips your brother got. Now no more talk about school, let's enjoy this wonderful dinner."

Harry was seated at the head of the table with Sirius on his left and Severus on his right. Despite it being an informal dinner it was still proper since they were at Harry's house. When they weren't entertaining guests they ate in the kitchen so it wasn't an issue. Jason insisted on sitting next to Harry, and ended up in a high chair between Harry and Severus. While Severus didn't mind children much, he wasn't too fond of them either.

Conversation flowed easily throughout dinner. Jamie and Jules were on the opposite end of the table, and Jason seemed to think that because his parents were far away he could let his mischievous side come out. When that side ended up dumping his pudding on Harry because Harry was talking to Henry, he found out that there were plenty of adults who to get in trouble with. He also realized that while Harry was a lot of fun, he did not like having food thrown at him.

"Young man why did you throw your pudding?"

"You talk to him."

"And I've spent a lot of time with you. I talk to everyone here. That was very impolite," Harry said sternly. He cleaned the mess before lifting Jason out of his chair and putting him down in a corner. He conjured a small stool and sat the little boy down. "I want you to sit here for five minutes. I will tell you when to come out. You do not throw food, even if you're upset."

Harry calmly sat back down at the table, leaving behind Jason who was sniffling because he had upset his friend. Everyone was staring at Harry and he looked around in confusion. "What?"

"You just punished him," Sirius said.

"I'm sorry, I should have let you or Jules handle it," Harry suddenly said to Jamie.

"It's not a problem. When he's in your home and he throws food at you, I expect you to handle it. We're just surprised you did. You're the fun uncle."

Harry laughed. "I am, but I also know little kids need to be told no every once in a while or they'll never learn. And he needed to learn that just because I'm the fun uncle, doesn't mean I'll ignore everyone else just because he's here and it doesn't mean he can throw food at me. He wasted perfectly good pudding."

"Where did you learn how to handle little kids?" Jules asked.

"At the park near my house growing up." Harry didn't really want to talk about it. He did know that he loved little kids. "Besides, even if he's upset I punished him I think my gifts will make up for it."

Sirius groaned. "You spoiled them didn't you."

"I might have gone a little overboard. For everyone, not just the little kids."

Severus cuffed him on the back of the head, followed by Sirius doing the same. "That's because I know I won't be able to after I see what extravagant gifts you got me," Severus said.

Harry laughed. "You'll love it. Jason, you may come back now."

The little boy practically launched himself at Harry, sniffling into his side. "I sorry!"

"You're forgiven little man. I can't possibly be angry at you. Now if I gave you more pudding, will you eat it?"

Jason nodded enthusiastically, not expecting the offer of more pudding, and after he was back in his seat he enthusiastically started eating. All the adults just shook their heads.

When Eric begged to be allowed to open one gift after dinner, Harry wholeheartedly agreed. "Come on, it's just one gift. Do you see that pile under and next to the tree? One gift will be fine. Tell you what. Everyone gets to open one of the gifts from me."

"Then you are opening a gift from me," Sirius said. Soon everyone was holding a gift and they decided to go around the room, starting with the small children.

Jason unwrapped his gift and found the whole set of the toy cars he had been collecting. It didn't take him long to start playing with them. Harry had coordinated with Jules, and asked her to give him Jason's wish list after she was done buying what she wanted. Harry had bought every single thing remaining on the list, both with Jason and with Nora, making sure to buy an equal number of gifts for each.

Nora unwrapped a beautiful doll she had seen in the store. She didn't know it yet, but the next day she'd be receiving a complete wardrobe for the doll. Harry had gotten help from Dora, as he knew nothing about what a doll might need.

Next was Lisa. She had shown a real interest in potions, and Harry had gotten her a book called 'Potions for the aspiring Witch or Wizard'. It was filled with easier potions that weren't taught at Hogwarts, intended for nine and ten year olds with a basic understanding of potions. She smiled before giving Harry a big hug.

Eric received a book as well, except his was titled '1001 pranks for the young Witch or Wizard'. "It even had tips on how to avoid getting caught," Harry whispered with a grin.

"Thanks Harry!"

"I might have to confiscate that," Remus said with amusement. "I believe Sirius or James owned that book and it got us into more trouble than we could imagine."

"I owned it. I still have it somewhere," Sirius laughed. "It's a good book, but be careful not to get caught. Alright Harry, your turn."

Once again it was a book, this one filled with advanced wandless charms. He grinned and immediately started reading through it. He only stopped when Sirius, who was sitting behind him while Harry sat on the floor leaning against the couch, took it out of his hands. "You can read this after Christmas."

Harry blushed and looked down. "No need to get embarrassed," Severus said. "We all understand the draw of an exciting new book."

Harry proceeded to hand Severus his gift and to everyone's amusement his reaction was the same as Harry and he had his book taken away by Henry. "Harry, do you have any idea how rare this book is?" Severus asked.

Harry nodded. He had given Severus a book on potions that he knew was extremely rare, so rare that he had been corresponding with various sellers of rare books for months. There had only been twenty five printed, and Harry had paid more than he'd ever admit. "I am aware. How hard it was to find that one was indication enough."

"I would ask what you paid for this but I know that's rude. Right now I'm debating between hugging you to death or flipping you over my knee for splurging on my gift."

Harry laughed. "I expected that reaction. I'd go for the hug." Harry didn't give Severus much time to decide and got up and gave him a big hug. "You're worth every penny."

Severus hugged him back, and for appearances sake swatted his backside before letting him go. "You do realize you might not see me the next couple days?"

"Just don't miss out on Christmas. Boxing day I'm alright with you skipping the Dursley visit." Harry ignored the swat. He knew Severus didn't know what to do with the conflicting feelings and was overwhelmed.

Next was Henry (for the adults they had decided to go in no particular order), who received a nice set of self-inking quills, spelled to write in whatever color you wanted. "Thank you Harry. These are beautiful and I do enough writing to put them to good use."

Sara received a book on household charms, and she flipped through it with a smile. "Some of these will be useful and I'd never heard of them!"

Jamie and Jules had been hard to buy for, so Harry had gotten them a combined gift as one of the gifts, and this is what he gave them that evening. It was a fully paid getaway for two to Paris. It was a week long. During that week, Dora and Dobby would babysit Jason and Nora. It was scheduled for the summer so the weather would be nice, and Dora loved kids and had actually volunteered when Harry had mentioned the idea to her but hadn't been sure if he would have time to watch the kids for a full week. Jules tackled Harry in a hug, before cuffing him on the head. "It's too much, we can't take this!"

"You can and you're going to. They will love spending the week here, and you can have a nice romantic getaway without having to worry about anything. And while we're on the topic, if you are all going to react like that to my gifts I'm going to have brain damage soon."

Jules laughed and gave him another hug. "Thank you. We haven't taken a vacation since Nora was born. This will be wonderful."

Dobby popped in with hot chocolate, knowing that the gift opening was over, and snapped his fingers to clean up the wrapping paper. Harry leaned back against the couch with a smile, cradling his chocolate and looking around. This is what Christmas should be like. Friendly banter between friends and family and a relaxed atmosphere. He knew Sirius and Remus were cuddled on the couch behind him, Jamie had his arm around Jules who had her feet up, and even Sara was leaning into Henry. Jason and Nora were playing with their toys while Lisa and Eric were reading through their books. Harry caught Severus' eye and smiled. Severus smiled back before sliding over further and patting the couch next to him. Harry took the invitation and soon he had his feet up and Severus' arm around him. "I know I'm not Viktor but you'll just have to make do."

Harry shook his head and smiled. "This is perfect papa."

"I'm sorry I swatted you."

Harry looked at him and continued smiling. "It didn't hurt and I knew you didn't know what to do with what you were feeling. Don't feel bad. You know as well as I that if you had meant that swat in a disciplinary matter it would have been harder. This was almost a loving pat."

"I'm glad you know the difference. That book truly is amazing. Somehow I have a feeling it won't be the last time I'm amazed this Christmas though."

Harry didn't say anything and looked back at the rest of the group. He wasn't about to tell his papa that he had gotten him quite a few rare potions ingredients, many of which were needed to brew the potions in the book he had just gifted. Lisa was going to get a lot of the ingredients she needed, Eric was going to get some pranking supplies and a new broom, Henry would get a bunch more things for his office and quite a few books that he had apparently wanted for a while (according to Sara). Sara had been harder to shop for, and in the end Harry had provided a gift voucher to various stores. They were mostly exclusive clothing and shoe stores. Sirius and Remus would get several smaller items, as well as a romantic week on Black Island, to be used when they wanted. Amongst their gifts was a box, not to be opened until they got to the Island. Harry had stocked it with items he probably shouldn't know existed. Dora had helped him with that by morphing into a guy and going to a store that sold those items, asking what the clerk recommended for a romantic getaway. She had come back bright red and had refused to discuss half the items. Jason and Nora would be getting a bunch of toys, including bikes (or a tricycle in Jason's case) for both of them. Jules was going to get a lot of charmed household items, that were charmed to be used even by muggles, that would make a lot of things easier for her around the house. That way she'd have more time to spend with her kids. Jamie was getting a gift voucher to a kitchen supply store, and Harry was going to upgrade their kitchen to a top of the line kitchen.

The next morning at six am, it was absolutely chaos on the living room. Dobby had provided coffee for the adults and it was absolutely mayhem to open all the gifts. In the end Harry had received many books, a nice desk set with quills, a self-updating planner so if Dora wrote something in it, he'd see it in his planner no matter where it was, a new broom servicing kit and a set of Quidditch robes.

Severus was staring in shock at his gifts. He had received new cauldrons, new brewing robes, a desk set like Harry's, and several books from everyone else, but the ingredients from Harry had him speechless. "You really ought to get smacked for spoiling me like this."

Harry looked up from a book he was looking through and grinned. "You might want to put those in your lab so kids can't get to them. I've also put parseltongue wards on your lab so nobody can enter it except you, myself, Sirius and Remus. I assumed if you are going to be brewing some of those potions you need guarantee they won't be disturbed."

Severus didn't need to be told twice, and it took him a good half hour to put everything in his lab. When he returned all the wrapping paper was cleaned up and everyone had started to make their way to the dining room for breakfast. He caught Harry and pulled him into a hug. "You shouldn't have spoiled me like that. A Griffin feather? I don't even want to know where you got that! Unicorn blood willingly given? Harry, those ingredients aren't just expensive, they are impossible to find."

"Not if you know where to look. I promise I did not break any laws to get any of the ingredients."

"I trust you. It's just hard to wrap my head around." 

"Just wait until you see my birthday gift to you."

Severus turned Harry around and gave him a stern look. "After everything you've given me I do not need a birthday gift."

Harry just shrugged. "I already have it so too late."

"Incorrigible. Come on, let's enjoy a good breakfast. From the smells coming from the dining room Dobby cooked everything that could possibly be classified as breakfast."

Harry laughed and they joined the rest of the group for breakfast. Severus was right and the table was covered in every dish imaginable. Everyone was waiting for Harry to start, but soon nothing was heard except the noise of people eating. "So it snowed overnight. I vote snowball fight," Harry said when everyone was done eating.

It took another twenty minutes for all the kids to convince all the adults, and another thirty for all the kids to be properly dressed according to their parents' standards. Even Harry was sent back to his room to get gloves when he wasn't wearing any. "But I make better snowballs with bare hands! I can charm them not to get cold!"

"I don't want to know when you had a snowball fight without gloves, since those charms simply make you feel warm. They do not make your hands warm so you can still get frostbite. Gloves. Now."

They divided into teams. Harry's team was Sirius, Remus, Eric, Jamie and Jason. The other team was Severus, Sara, Henry, Nora, Lisa and Jules. Harry had quickly figured out Severus' strategy of charming the snowballs, and fought back using magic as well as muggle strategies. A lot of his training came into play, and soon he had managed to get behind Severus and showed a large amount of snow down his neck. There were no winners in the fight, but Harry ended up rolling around in the snow with Severus, wrestling in the snow. Soon Jason saw them and joined, which resulted in Harry tickling the little boy until he was covered in snow as well.

In the end it was just before lunch when they all made their way back inside, laughing and covered in snow. Jamie and Jules went upstairs to give their kids a warm bath, Eric and Lisa were sent to their respective rooms to do the same. Harry gave each of his fathers a hug before heading upstairs himself. He loved the relaxing morning they had had. While soaking in the warm tub in his bathroom he realized that he felt more content than he had for a long while.

He enjoyed a relaxing lunch with everyone, but after that everyone started to leave and head home. Harry knew he had about an hour before Andromeda, Ted, Dora and Draco would be there and he knew he was expected to dress nicer than the jeans and shirt he was currently wearing. He sat down in his office and looked at he portraits. "Merry Christmas everyone. Sorry I didn't have a chance to talk to you earlier."

They all smiled at Harry. "Merry Christmas sweetheart. You all seemed to be having a lot of fun, and the joy was clear when you all came back in from your snowball fight," Lily said. "You have people coming in an hour, don't you?"

Harry nodded. "The Tonks'. It's family but I know it's more formal than Christmas has been so far."

"At least you had a good day. I'm pretty sure if we were alive we would have spoiled you rotten, and I'm glad to see the others have picked up and did just that," James said with a smile.

Harry laughed. "I spoiled right back. It's fun to see someone speechless and being the reason for it."

"Harry, you need to go get changed," Sirius said from the doorway.

Harry sighed and got up. "I know. I don't quite trust my spellwork to change my underwear."

Harry left while the portraits laughed. Sirius actually winced. "I've had that go wrong once. Smart decision."

When their guests arrived Harry smiled and greeted them all. "I think we should start with some tea. I for one could use it."

Once tea was served Harry turned to Draco. "How are your holidays so far?"

"They are great. I've been flying almost every day. I received a few books this morning and I look forward to reading them."

"We all received a few of those. I think we're all going to be doing the same thing around here. Severus is probably going to disappear into his lab, only to surface when we drag him out."

"What book did he get?"

"Most Ancient Potions," Severus said. "Including many ingredients needed to brew the potions in it."

Draco's eyes went wide. He knew exactly how rare that book was. Dora just laughed. "He has too many holiday gatherings to disappear completely."

Severus almost pouted but contained the look on his face. "Harry has already excused me from the Dursley visit tomorrow."

"Why do you see those people?" Draco asked. "I can't imagine any love lost with them."

"There isn't, but they are family and I get along with Dudley. Besides, I look forward to introducing Petunia to Lily's portrait." Nobody missed the gleam in Harry's eyes.

"Behave," Severus said sternly. "Lily will not go easy on her and you know that perfectly well."

"You're right about that," Lily said. "She hurt my baby and I will not stand for it. But I agree. I will talk to her, but you will not rub it in Harry."

"I won't. I'm just going to watch and smile inwardly."

"I might stay out of my lab long enough to watch," Severus laughed. "I've been on the receiving end of a Lily scolding before and it's no picnic."

"I've been on the receiving end of both a Lily and a Mr Potter scolding before," Sirius said, looking pained. "Then again she might faint when Lily starts talking."

Sirius ended up being right, because as soon as Lily started talking to Petunia she fainted. All Lily had said was 'Hi Petunia', and Harry to leave the room to stop from laughing. Dudley just smiled and sat down, while Vernon frantically tried to help Petunia.

When Harry returned to the living room Petunia was regaining consciousness, and sitting on the couch.

"Petunia, I'd like to discuss your treatment of my son. How could you. How could you treat your own nephew like dirt and spoil your own son rotten. Harry never should have gone to you, but when he did you got paid to raise him and you still didn't. If anything had happened to you, I would have raised Dudley like my own son. What kind of human being are you that you forced an innocent child to live in a cupboard. Did you hate me that much that you couldn't put it all aside and be there for a child who had just lost both his parents? You knew about magic, yet you chose to let him believe he was a freak unworthy of love. I promise you that if I could, I would step out of this portrait and slap you. I don't understand how Harry can be in the same room with you, but I suppose having a magical son is the world's way to force you to interact with the magical world. I loved you, even when you hated me for going to Hogwarts while you couldn't, but right now I can't even look at you. I'm ashamed you are my sister, and I know our parents would be ashamed to call you their daughter."

Petunia was looking at Lily in fear the whole time she was talking. It was clear she was worried Lily would come out of the portrait at any moment. When Lily didn't she visibly relaxed, but it was clear the words had hit her hard.

"Mrs Dursley, you might not know me but I'm Harry's grandfather. If I had been alive I would have hexed you properly. A cupboard. I hope you have changed your opinion of wizards because your son is one, but even if you have, you can't ever undo what you did to my grandson. He is a better person than you could ever be. I'm disappointed you're still alive, as I expected his guardians to hex you, but I suppose they are all better people than any of us. I don't think you truly understand that what you did was child abuse, but I hope one day you will. And I hope it hits you hard. You abused my grandson by neglecting him, and you abused your own son by spoiling him rotten, stuffing him with food that would have caused diabetes and heart disease at an early age, and allowing him to be a bully. I'm trying to find a way to hex you even though I'm a portrait, and you better watch out for the day I figure it out."

"Harry, please leave the room," James said.

"What? Why?"

"Because I told you to. I want to talk to Vernon, Dudley and Petunia alone. Sirius, Severus, Remus, if you could give us some privacy I'd appreciate it."

"But -"

"No Harry, no arguments," James said sternly.

"That's not fair."

"Harry James. I might be a portrait but I would be more than happy to have a private discussion with you later if you do not leave the room. Padfoot, please put up privacy spells when you leave so Pronglet can't eavesdrop."

Harry glared at James before leaving the room. He walked to his office and slammed the door behind him. He wanted to see his relatives get their due, and did not like being sent out of the room. It only took fifteen minutes before James appeared in the portrait in Harry's office. "You may go back in there."

"Oh now I'm allowed in my own living room. Wonderful."

"Harry James. You are acting like a spoiled brat. I know you don't like being excluded but you did not need to hear what I had to say. If I had been able to leave the room with them I would have but I'm stuck in a portrait. Now go out there and be a good host. You have been moody ever since you came home for the holidays. I don't know why, but it will stop. I think you just need a vacation and you are going on one after tomorrow, but for now you need to behave like the gentleman I know you are."

Harry glared at James before walking out of his office. Just before walking back into the living room Severus pulled him into a hug. "I know the holidays have been hard for you so far, but I promise our trip will be without any obligations and responsibilities. We will just have fun and do as much or as little as we want. Go in there, exchange gifts and pleasantries, and when they leave you can do whatever you want until we have to go to dinner tomorrow night, alright?"

"I will. I'm sorry for being such a brat."

"You're a teenager. I'd be worried if you didn't have an attitude at times. I'm going to my lab, let me know if you need anything and I'll come back up."

Harry walked back into the living room and called Dobby to get tea. They talked about nothing in particular and then exchanged Christmas gifts. Harry had gotten Dudley a set of casual robes, knowing that the Dursleys would never buy those for him. Not knowing what to get Petunia and Vernon, but knowing how much Petunia hated cooking and cleaning, Harry, Sirius, Remus and Severus had gotten together and bought a house elf. The elf would be bonded to Dudley, as they have to be bonded to a wizard or witch, but the elf would work at Privet Drive for as long as Dudley lived there. After that Dudley could choose to take the elf with him when he moved out, or leave the elf with his parents. Petunia looked sceptical, but when Harry explained everything the elf would be doing she seemed genuinely happy with the gift.

Harry received a book on Quidditch from Dudley, and a gift certificate to a muggle bookstore from his aunt and uncle. Sirius, Remus and Severus all got the same thing. Harry knew no thought had gone into the gifts from the Dursleys, but then again he was surprised they had remembered to buy anything at all.

The Dursleys stayed for another two hours, during which it was mostly Dudley and Harry catching up, and Dudley showing his parents some magic he had learned. When they finally left Harry relaxed back on the couch and sighed. "I want to go flying but it's snowing again and I doubt you all would let me go out."

Sirius nodded. "We won't. It's snowing pretty hard. You want to play a game?"

Harry shook his head and summoned a book. "I'm just going to read for a while."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Dad! Hurry up!" Harry yelled up the stairs. They were getting ready to leave for Austria, and Harry was anxious to do so. The evening before had been a lot of fun. While dinner with the Royal Family had been formal and slightly stuffy, he had been able to sneak away for a while with Alex and they had explored the palace. They had compared experiences of their holidays so far, and Harry found that Alex had just as many obligations he did. It was nice to share that with someone who understood how nice it was just to get away.

Sirius came down the stairs with a glare at Harry. "We were leaving at eleven. It is ten fifty five. I'm ready to go now."

"Sorry, I'm just excited."

"I know you are but tone it down a little. Save the energy for the slopes."

It didn't take the group long to take the portkey, and soon they found themselves in Austria. They slowly walked down the street, renting skis and sleds when they past the shop, and checked into their condo. "Can we go now?" Harry asked.

Severus laughed and turned Harry towards the backdoor. "Go sled down that hill for a while. We'll get settled and after that we can all go skiing."

Harry grabbed a sled and he was out the door before anyone could say anything else. Severus noted he had left his shrunken suitcase behind, not even bothering to put it in his room. "He's going to be the death of us if he keeps up this level of energy."

Remus laughed and threw Severus the suitcase. "Want to put that in his room? Might as well unpack for him. Maybe by the time we are done he'll have lost some of his energy."

Severus took the suitcase and with a flick of his wand unpacked for Harry. He then did the same in his room before proceeding to make tea. Remus and Sirius were still in their room, and he had no intention of going to find them. When the tea was ready, he walked onto the back porch and watched Harry sled down the hill at breakneck speeds, before running back up.

Almost an hour later Sirius and Remus appeared from the bedroom, and the three of them called Harry in. "Let's go get some lunch and then we can go skiing," Sirius said with a smile.

That evening Harry was lounging on the couch with hot chocolate. He had a happy smile on his face, and had really enjoyed the day. The fire was on in the fireplace, and Severus was next to him reading a book. Sirius and Remus were on the other couch, not really doing anything. "This is truly vacation," Harry said happily. "No responsibilities, nobody telling anyone what to do. No schedule. Are you sure we're only here four days?"

Sirius laughed. "Yes, we are. And I agree, it is nice. But once we get back you won't be nearly as busy as you have been."

"True. I'll have plenty of time to read my new Defense books. I'm excited to try some of those spells."

Sirius nodded. "I skimmed through some of them, and I wouldn't mind learning some of the spells mentioned. I definitely don't know them all. We can do it together if you'd like?"

"That would be cool," Harry said with a smile. "Is it bad that I'm content just sitting here staring at the fire?"

"No, it's normal. You've been busy for weeks, and today you've been very active. Your body just needs some rest. Once we get back we have a trip to the amusement park, then Godric's Hollow, so it's good for you to do nothing and worry about nothing while you can."

Harry didn't really reply. He didn't want to go clean out Godric's Hollow, but he knew it was necessary. He had planned to meet up with Bill and Charlie soon afterwards, knowing he'd need to process all of it.

The next few days were spent in leisure. They would sleep in, go skiing, eat at various restaurants around town, and spend the evening either in the hot tub or in front of the fire. More often than not Harry would fall asleep on the couch and wake up in his bed the following morning. He felt more rested than he had in a while, and the others could do nothing but agree.

When it was time to leave Harry was almost reluctant. He was looking forward to the amusement park, mostly because it meant spending time with his friends, but he also knew the time of not having to do anything was over. He needed to get back and learn more spells, get back to working out in the mornings, and prepare to clean out Godric's Hollow of all personal items so it could be repaired. All the pictures were going on his living room (the one inside his bedroom suite) wall, while other personal items were going to be put in trunks and put in the Potter vaults. Dora had already found a contractor to do the repairs, and they were starting in a week's time.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry!" Hermione yelled as soon as Harry apparated to the amusement park with his fathers. Harry grinned at seeing Hermione, Cedric, Viktor (who had portkeyed just for the day), Alex, Fred, George, Neville, Hannah, Susan, Eric, Ernie and Luna there.

"Hi guys! Sorry we are late, I couldn't find my trainers."

Alex laughed. "Considering how messy you are, that's not surprising. I'm telling you guys, if it wasn't for Dobby he'd never find anything on his side of the room."

Harry just grinned back. "So I might be a little messy. Usually summoning something works but the shoe was stuck underneath my trunk. So we ready to go inside?"

Everyone nodded and the excited group made their way to the gates, where Severus got everyone tickets. Once inside he gathered them all together. "I want you all to stay in at least groups of three at all times. Make sure at least one person knows the Patronus, if one of us is needed you can send it. I find any of you in a group of less than 3 and you will be required to spend the rest of the day with Sirius, Remus, Dora, Kingsley or myself. I'd like at least one of us to be in each group, but I understand that might not always be possible. Don't do anything stupid, don't do anything you know we disapprove of. Weasleys, that means no pranks. Besides that have fun and we'll meet you all at 1 for lunch in the food court."

Pretty soon they had all decided where they wanted to go first, and to nobody's surprise Harry, Viktor, Cedric and Eric went to the Quidditch obstacle course first. Harry grinned when he saw the arena. There were all sorts of obstacles floating in the air, from rings to bludgers, to fiery hoops. He even saw some flags that he assumed you were supposed to fly around. They got in line, and soon they had re-sized their Firebolts. The attendant look in jealousy at their brooms, and when it was their turn it turned out Harry was right. You were supposed to follow the flags and avoid the obstacles along the way. In the end you would get your time so you'd see how you compared to others.

Harry went first and soon he was just a blur. He was swerving, diving, looping, rolling and climbing fast. He almost got knocked off his broom by a bludger but managed to swerve out of the way. Part of the obstacle course was throwing a Quaffle through a hoop, hitting a target with a bludger using a provided bat, and catching a snitch. When he finished he landed with a grin, not realizing all the workers had stopped to stare at him. When Viktor landed next to him, and a little while later Cedric, they made their way to the booth to check their times.

It turned out Harry had the top time with eighteen minutes and five seconds, Viktor was second with eighteen minutes and twelve seconds, and Cedric third with eighteen minutes and forty seconds. Harry and Viktor actually took the number one and two spots on the overall leaderboard.

"That was amazing!" Harry said in excitement, shrinking his broom and putting it in his pocket. "We should create something like that at Hogwarts."

Viktor and Cedric nodded in agreement. "It'd be good for practice," Viktor said.

Besides being magical, the park also had normal roller coasters which is where the trio headed next. Sirius and Remus had decided to stay close to Harry for the day, and followed the group. When they all met up for lunch, everyone was bursting with excitement and sharing stories. Harry thought the boat ride, which ended with the boat going down a long slide and splashing at the bottom, soaking everyone in it, sounded fun. Eric was going to try the Quidditch obstacle course, while the girls had liked some enchanted place filled with mirrors that showed you in different ways (older, younger, different hair color, etc.). The adults all listened to the excited teenagers and shared amused looks. It was clear that coming to the park that day had been a good decision.

In the end, Harry had been on every attraction and ride, and he was exhausted but happy. The group met for dinner, before special portkeys took everyone home. When Harry landed in the living room he excitedly told the portraits all about his day. They listened patiently, all happy to let Harry be a true teenager. Harry ended up falling asleep mid story and Sirius smiled at him before looking up at the portrait. "You would have loved this place James. I know it was there when we were growing up but it's been expanded and is so much better now. I have a feeling we'll be going back sometime. I'm going to take him up to bed. Tomorrow we are going to Godric's Hollow so he'll need his sleep."

That turned out to be very true, and Harry was happy to have gotten some sleep. Going through all his parents' belongings was hard, and seeing Sirius, Remus and Severus teary eyed next to him wasn't helping either. Harry knew he had tears running down his face most of the day. He had started in his old bedroom and was slowly filling a trunk with all his baby things. When he was done he closed the trunk and labeled it, before shrinking it to put in his pocket. He knew one day he'd open it, one day when he had children of his own, but for now he could not look at the reminder of a childhood he never got to live.

The pictures were all put in a box and sent to Black Manor by way of Dobby, with the instruction to hang them in Harry's suite. Harry walked to his parents' bedroom, where Sirius and Remus were finishing up. Harry knew Severus was working on the kitchen downstairs, carefully wrapping all the breakable dishes. "Dad, Moony, you alright?" Harry knew seeing the both of them this distraught was rare and he wasn't sure what to do.

Sirius stood up and grabbed Harry into a hug. "Seeing all of James' things is hard. We found their old school trunks. It brought back a lot of memories. We shrunk them and put them inside the trunk so they'll be there if you ever want to see them."

Harry nodded and tightened his hold on his dad. Soon Remus joined the hug. This is what Severus walked into. He looked around the room and saw that Sirius and Remus were done, and before he realized what he was doing he joined the group hug. He needed the comfort as much as the others. The kitchen had been Lily's domain, and there had been personal items all around. He had also done the living room, and now all that was left was the study and library. They had gotten a special trunk that would house the library with the flick of a wand, but Harry had to do it. They didn't want anything left in the house when the workers came, everything including the furniture was going to the vaults.

They stood there, hugging one another and taking in the comfort for a good twenty minutes. Harry was in the middle, and he didn't any of the arms around him to let go, but he knew they needed to go and finish. "Library?"

Severus pulled back and nodded. "The trunk is already there, it just requires you to say the spell as Lord Potter."

Harry nodded and they all made their way downstairs. A quick spell later and all the books were flying to the trunk, sorting themselves within. While the spell was working Harry went to the study and started putting everything there in trunks. Sirius, Remus and Severus were shrinking all the furniture and preparing it for transport. They knew it would take several trips, but Harry had given Ragnok a head's up to what they were doing. By the time Harry was done, so was the library spell and all the furniture.

"Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"I want you to pop me to Gringotts. We are going to be putting everything in the vaults. Sirius, Remus, Severus, take as much as you can and apparate there. With all of us it should take two trips at most."

Ragnok was waiting for them and upon their arrival immediately took them down. All the trunks and furniture was re-sized to normal size once inside the vaults, making it easier to find at a later date. A quick second trip emptied the rest of Godric's Hollow. Harry stood in the vault, looking at everything for a minute, before turning around and leaving. "I'm glad it's all safe now."

When they arrived back at Black Manor, Lily, James, Mr and Mrs Potter were all looking at them in sympathy. "The repairs will start next week. Godric's Hollow will be a proper home again, and once they are done we will make it unplottable. One day a family will live there and experience the joy of living in that beautiful home," Remus said. His voice was raspy, mostly from all the tears he'd shed that day.

Harry nodded. "I don't know if I could ever live there, especially since I see what happened that night when the dementors are near, but I hope one day my children will love it. It's a beautiful home. I'm going upstairs. I'll be back for dinner."

It was only an hour until dinner, but they all knew Harry wanted to see the new pictures in his room. They all agreed they were where they were supposed to be. "How is he holding up?" James asked.

"He cried all day. We all did," Remus said honestly. "Going through all your things was hard Prongs. We found your school trunk. There were even some joke products in there that were never used. It just reminded me of the life Harry should have had, where those products would have been used. I just hope we are doing alright making up for lost time."

"What we've seen is only a fraction of how you're doing, and you are doing pretty amazing with him," Lily said. "I knew we'd made the right choice in choosing who to have raise our son if something happened to us. I know you came to the party a couple years late, but you've more than made up for it."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Family magic in effect?" Bill asked Harry. They were in Harry's lounge, where Bill and Charlie had found him deep in thought.

"Yes," Harry said simply. He didn't look at Bill or Charlie. All morning he had been thinking about how his life could have been different. He had always known, but seeing all of it at Godric's Hollow and packing it away had brought it home.

Bill nodded before lifting Harry off the beanbag he was sitting on and pulling him into a hug. "Let it all out."

Bill and Charlie knew where Harry had spent the previous day, and knew Harry needed to let go of it all. Sirius had warned them that Harry had spent most of the previous day in tears, but the two men weren't sure if Harry had truly grieved the loss of his parents and the life he should have had. Harry shook his head and Bill pulled back slightly, looking Harry in the eye.

"Harry, you need to let all the emotion out. It's not healthy to keep it in. This room is a safe place. Nothing will go beyond these walls. I know you put up a strong front outside, but in here, with us, you don't have to be strong. Lean on us. Let us take some of the weight."

Apparently that was what Harry needed to hear as he suddenly started sobbing. Bill pulled him back into his arms and shared a look with Charlie. The sobs were deep and heart wrenching, and they knew Harry was letting out more than just the cleaning out of his parental home. They knew Harry would talk when ready, for now they just let him cry.

Harry wasn't sure why he was crying the way he was. He knew it was partially because of the loss of childhood and his parents, but that couldn't be all of it. When he was all cried out he simply leaned against Bill's chest. He was lead to the couch where Charlie was sitting, and soon he was on the couch with Charlie's arm around him. He found he really liked the strong, muscular arm around him. It was obvious Charlie had worked with dragons, and the strong arm provided a lot of comfort. "Want to talk?" Charlie asked softly.

"I don't know why I broke down like that. Yes, some of it was having to pack up Godric's Hollow. About seeing everything I missed out on, about the happy life that was destroyed that night. But I'm not sure about the rest."

"Maybe it's also everything that has happened the past year? Have you ever fully processed all of it? You might have found family, but you've been through more than anyone else since then."

"I suppose that could be it. Thank you for just letting me be."

Charlie squeezed slightly. "It's what we're here for. Now, I've heard you learned some new spells. Planning to use those for mischief anytime soon?"

Harry laughed. "Would I tell you if I was?"

"Well the Twins have been plotting something. It was pretty obvious over Christmas. Somehow we don't believe you aren't involved in that."

"My lips are sealed."

"Oh come on. Nothing you say can leave this room, and besides, we wouldn't tell on you anyway. Is it going to land you in trouble?"

"Only if caught."

Charlie turned Harry slightly to look at him. "Danger to your life trouble?"

Harry saw the slightly stern look mixed in with curiosity on Charlie's face. "Maybe, but not likely."

"Hmmm. You know we won't say anything about pranks, but don't go putting yourself in danger. We want you around a little longer."

"Trust me, my backside will be toast if we get caught. But I have a get out of punishment free card I intend to use should that happen. I have no intention of putting my backside in danger, and I promise that's the only part of me that will be in danger with this prank."

Charlie laughed. "Well I hope you don't have to use that card. You still not going to tell me?"

"Nope. Don't want to jinx it. Plus I think you'll both tell me I'm crazy for even considering participating."

"It involves the professors, doesn't it?" Bill asked.

"hmm."

"That says enough. Just be careful. I agree with Charlie it'd be great if you didn't have to use that card. So tell us about this amusement park you went to?"

The rest of the afternoon Harry, Charlie and Bill caught up on everything that happened in all their lives. Harry felt much better when they left, like a weight had been lifted off his shoulder.

Up next: To pranking we go


	52. To Pranking We Go

AN: Some angst in this chapter. I'm sorry for those of you hate me for writing this or who think it's out of character for Viktor! I let the characters do the talking, and sometimes they lead me in a direction that I hadn't originally intended the story to go. I am also aware that I am completely ignoring time zones. To make the story work, pretend the portkey not only takes you to the other country, it also makes it so you arrive at the same time there as the time you left where you came from. It's magic. Everything is possible.

Chapter 52 - To Pranking We Go

"Alright Harry, intent and focus. Keep that in mind. Now I want you to focus on going over to Sirius," Severus said. He had been explaining the intricacies of apparating for about twenty minutes.

Harry nodded and closed his eyes. Following the instructions, he calmed his breathing and found his magical core. He then pictured the spot right next to Sirius in his mind, before focusing his magical energy on transporting himself there. He then pushed a little bit of magic into the apparition and opened his eyes. He looked around, noticing that his arm was no longer attached to his body. He looked at Severus who was trying really hard not to laugh.

"It's okay. You can laugh. Hey Sirius, can you bring my arm back!" Harry yelled across the yard. Sirius walked over and with a quick spell reattached Harry's arm. "Now I can try again. Maybe I'll move a leg this time."

Severus stopped laughing and soon Harry was trying again. This time he moved everything except a leg. He had a hard time keeping his balance upon landing because of it and promptly fell over. "Oh hi Sirius. Severus! My leg!"

"Pup, you're getting better. Most people don't apparate at all at first, so you are doing much better than most. Once you have your leg back, you can try apparating back to Severus."

It took several more tries, but soon Harry was apparating all over Black Manor. Remus had remained inside, claiming he had grading to do, and when Harry apparated right in front of him he upended his bottle of ink. "Harry! Be careful where you apparate to!"

"Sorry, I planned to land further from the table. It's pretty cool how we can apparate inside the property, but not into the property or out of the property except from the apparition spot just outside the wards."

"It's for safety reasons. Now apparate back to Severus and tell him lunch will be ready soon, and you need to get to your homework."

Harry stuck out his tongue, but quickly apparated back to Severus to relay the message.

Harry passed his apparition test with flying colors, and talked his guardians into letting him celebrate at Black Manor. It is Friday night and Severus, Sirius, Remus, Bill, Charlie and Harry are around the dining room table.

"I'm leaving Harry," Jamie says from the doorway. "Congratulations on passing."

"Thank you Jamie. Have a good night. Give Nora and Jason hugs from me."

"I remember when Fred and George passed over the summer, they were apparating everywhere," Charlie said with a laugh. "You're not going to do that, are you?"

"I wasn't planning on it. Besides, I can't do it at all at Hogwarts. It's unfortunate, it would really make getting to class so much easier."

"That's probably why it's not possible. Imagine a group of students all apparating to the same place the same time. Accidents would be happening daily," Bill said.

"True. But it would be nice. Hey dad, when are we going to sit down and try to figure out how Voldemort stayed alive the first time and how we can defeat him? It's been a while since we heard the prophecy and we really ought to get on that instead of letting him get stronger."

"You do know how to ruin a party, don't you Harry?" Sirius said. "Next weekend we are visiting all the Black properties. The weekend after that Godric's Hollow will be done so we need to visit it to get it warded, but we can come back here after that and see what we can figure out."

"Are you two still coming next weekend?" Harry asked Charlie and Bill. He had asked Bill because as ward expert and curse breaker, he would be able to help them determine what wards were on each property. Charlie was coming just because. Bill was also going to come to Godric's Hollow to help set the wards there.

"Absolutely," Charlie said with a grin. "I've always wondered what kind of properties the Blacks had."

"Excellent. I'm excited to see them all. I've seen the listings and they look fairly impressive. We'll also visit the Gryffindor property in Hogsmeade."

Plans were made on what day they would be seeing which property, and what time they'd have to leave. Severus was in charge of creating portkeys for the international properties.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry, you ready?" Fred whispered.

Harry nodded and they slowly started making their way down to the kitchens. They knew the elves prepared the tables for breakfast early, and then simply added the platters of food. The Cloak was a little small for the three of them, but they made it work by going slow and hunching down to make themselves smaller.

They knew if they got caught, they'd be in major trouble. The potion they had prepared was innocent in itself. It was intended to make the drinker extremely happy for about an hour. However, they had added a drop of alcohol. From what they had discovered when doing this over the summer (on accident), it made the drinker not only happy, they also became more carefree and in general didn't care what others thought. Against their own better judgment, they had decided to prank everyone, including the staff. Harry had indicated he would have never done that if he didn't have a 'get out of punishment free' card, and Fred and George had said the whooping they'd get would still be worth it.

To their excitement, all the goblets were already filled with pumpkin juice. A quick spell from Harry had the potion divided equally in all of them. They were only putting in enough to affect everyone in the Hall for twenty minutes. Harry had volunteered to do the spell, as he could get out of punishment if someone traced it. They hadn't been able to think of another way to do it without running into the elves.

They quietly made their way out of the kitchen and down a corridor. They pulled off the Cloak and grinned, before making their way to the Great Hall. Harry sat with them at the Gryffindor table, patiently waiting for breakfast to start.

Harry was watching in amazement as everyone was exhubarant and happy. He looked at his friends at the Ravenclaw table and wasn't surprised that Luna was her normal self, probably because she didn't drink her juice. He saw Hermione and Cedric next to her, making out and laughed. He tried to find Viktor, having expected him to come to him, but instead found him coziing up to a Seventh year Ravenclaw. When Viktor kissed him, Harry had had enough and ran from the Hall. He ran straight up to his room in Severus' quarters.

Back in the Great Hall Fred and George had followed Harry's look, and when he bolted from the Hall they shared a look. The potion would make you more carefree, definitely, but it would never make you do something you didn't want to do. They had made certain of that. As one Fred and George got up from their seats and made their way over. They were aware that Severus, Sirius and Remus were watching them walk. They weren't surprised they hadn't drank the juice, knowing they all cast detection charms. Viktor normally did as well, which is what made this even more surprising. Harry had assumed Viktor wouldn't drink the potion.

They got to Viktor and pulled him out of his seat. Before George could stop him, Fred and given Viktor a hard punch in the nose before doing the same to the Ravenclaw. "How could you," George spat at Viktor. Before a fight could break out Severus had appeared. "Misters Weasley, please follow me."

Once out of the Hall, Severus turned to the twins. "I'm assuming you are responsible?" 

"Please sir, we have to find Harry. We didn't think Viktor would drink the juice without casting detection charms, and the potion we used just makes you happy. It wasn't supposed to cause that."

Severus sighed. "Viktor didn't drink the juice. I was looking for Harry and saw Viktor cast his detection charm before knocking over his drink so he couldn't drink it on accident. Unless you put potion in the pitchers as well, he didn't drink the potion."

"We didn't. So what happened?"

"Sirius and Remus will find out. My thought is that he saw an opportunity. Why he would do that is beyond me, but I can guarantee Sirius and Remus will not go easy on him. Come on, I think I know where to possibly find Harry. And don't think this will get you all out of trouble."

"Wouldn't dream of it sir," George said.

Severus first checked Harry's room in Sirius' quarters before walking to his own. He found Harry face down on his bed, crying into his pillow. He motioned for Fred and George to wait in the living room. He had noticed the boys' surprise at Harry having a room there as well but ignored it for now.

"Harry?" Severus asked softly while sitting down on the side of the bed. He started rubbing circles on Harry's back, hoping to comfort the boy.

Harry suddenly turned around and flung himself into Severus' arms. Severus caught him before shifting back on the bed, his back against the wall. He just held the boy who was now crying into his shoulders. When Sirius and Remus came in, they both had somber expressions on their face.

"The Headmistress would like to see the three pranksters. Viktor wants to talk to Harry but we've forbidden him from going near Harry until Harry is ready."

"Why?" Harry asked softly.

"Why what pup?" Sirius asked. He had sat down on the bed, along with Remus.

"Why did he do it? If he wanted to break up with me, he could have done that. The potion wasn't supposed to do that."

Severus sighed. "The potion didn't. He didn't drink it. He is the only one who can tell you why."

Harry sniffled a bit before looking at his fathers who were all around him. "Am I in trouble?"

"Heaps, but that's not important right now."

Harry just nodded and burrowed back into Severus' robes. "Fred and George are in the living room. They are worried and want to know if you need them to beat up someone. They already gave Viktor an impressive broken nose."

Harry chuckled. "No, I need to talk to Viktor. You said the headmistress wants to see us?"

"Yes, she does."

"Let's go get that out of the way. After that I want to talk to Viktor."

The group slowly made their way to the headmistress office. Fred and George each had an arm around Harry, who they had to admit looked terrible. When they walked into the office, Minerva raised an eyebrow. "What happened to you Mr Potter-Black?"

"Headmistress, if we could get to the point?" Severus asked politely, shaking his head. Minerva caught the hint to not ask further and got to the point.

"I traced the magical signature back to Harry, and I know you two were involved. I've decided to let your parents deal with most of it. You are each suspended for 1 day. Sirius, Remus, Severus, I will excuse one of you from classes if need be."

Harry shook his head. "May I talk to Viktor before I leave? It's important."

Minerva nodded. She had seen what had happened. "You may."

"I don't need any of them to miss a day. Dora and Jamie are at the Manor all day so I'll be fine."

"Very well. Misters Weasley, I suggest you go pack what you need. You will floo home with one of your parents from my office and you will return just before breakfast on Saturday. Mr Potter-Black, as you had already indicated you'd be out of the castle this weekend, I will see you on Monday."

They all left the office and Harry let himself be walked to the Ravenclaw common room, where they were met by Professor Flitwick. "Mr Potter-Black, Mr Krum is in my office. Severus, Sirius, Remus, I'll take it from here and will deliver him to your rooms when he's done."

Professor Flitwick remained in the room but allowed them to cast a privacy bubble. "Why Viktor?" Harry asked right away.

Viktor sighed. "I love you Harry, I do. But the past few weeks I've been thinking it's more as a good friend than a boyfriend. We didn't see eachother much over break, and we barely talked, and I realized I didn't miss you. Jordan and I had been working together a lot the past semester, and I found that I was constantly thinking about him, not you. I'm so sorry." 

"Why didn't you just talk to me?" 

"Because I was worried you'd cry. Like you are doing now."

"I cried because you bloody well kissed him in front of everyone! You let the whole school watch while you cheated on me! And don't blame the damn potion because you didn't take it, like I knew you wouldn't!"

"I know. I'm sorry. I do want to remain friends."

"We'll see. I enjoy spending time with you, and with time maybe we can get back to that. Next time you want to break up with someone, be a man and do it. I'm suspended so I'll see you after the weekend."

Harry stood up and nodded at Professor Flitwick. "Mr Krum, I've made it clear that Ravenclaws do not do anything as dishonest as cheating. Don't let me find out you've done it again."

While walking back to the teacher's wing, Harry glanced at the tiny professor. "Are you angry with me?"

"No. I know you are suspended and I know your father will deal with your punishment. I think you've been punished enough, now you just need some love. And just so you know, Ravenclaws don't do well with cheating. Viktor will hear about this for a good long while."

"I hope they aren't too hard on him?" 

"No, they'll lecture him, scold him. Yell at him some. Then the seventh year Prefect will tell him he's not welcome in the Common Room until he's proven he can be a true Ravenclaw, which means he has to stay in his dorm room after curfew. It will likely last a week and then be done. They will act protective towards you, you are a Ravenclaw as well after all."

Harry didn't really reply, and when he was in his room he had Dobby get what he'd need for the weekend before facing his fathers. "What's the verdict?" 

"A week grounding and a spanking. Bare bottom," Sirius said.

"I'd like to use my get out of punishment card. I know it won't work on the suspension." 

Sirius nodded. "Very well. I will escort you home and explain to Dora that she is in charge while you're there."

"You do realize that it's Thursday? So a day's suspension is really almost two days?"

"Yes, and Minerva knows that as well. Harry, you drugged all the staff and students. On your record it will only be listed as one day though."

"I know. Dobby is already taking my things to Black Manor. I'm assuming you all will bring me my homework tonight?"

"Yes, we will. Come on, let's go."

Once they arrive at Black Manor Harry followed Sirius to Dora's office. "Dora? Harry got suspended so he'll be here until Sunday night. He does not want us to miss classes, so you are in charge. He is not grounded, so he can do what he wants as long as he gets his school work done."

"What did he do?" Dora asked.

"Used a prank potion on the entire student body and staff."

Dora's eyes widened. "Very well. Anything else?"

Sirius shook his head but Harry nodded. "I don't want to see or hear from Viktor. Please block his communications."

"I can do that. Do we need a press release?"

Harry snorted. "Considering the entire school saw him kiss someone else? No. Because it's protocol we probably should do it anyway though."

"I will prepare it," Dora said before pulling Harry into a hug. Sirius left to fill in Jamie and to let Jamie know not to feed Viktor anymore. He knew Viktor had occasionally been getting meals as well whenever Jamie made too much. "Does he need hexed?"

"Fred broke his nose and he is being dealt with in Ravenclaw. Professor Flitwick said Ravenclaws don't tolerate cheating. I'm going to go fly for a bit."

Harry wasn't surprised to see Charlie when he came in for lunch. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?" 

"I have an hour for lunch and I came to see how you were doing."

"News travels fast."

"How are you Harry?"

"I'm fine."

"No, you aren't. Need me to hex him? Beat him up?"

"Everyone is asking that," Harry said, almost laughing. "But no thank you. Your brother already covered it."

"Good. I'll be going there after work to ensure they are still alive. It's a little early in the term to get suspended, isn't it?"

Harry shrugged. "I have a feeling she did it so I'd have some time away from Viktor, but I can't prove it. I'm not going to complain about a long weekend."

"Alright. I have to get going. Bill and I will be here tomorrow night. I'm assuming you aren't grounded?"

"Used my card, or I would have been."

Charlie nodded. "I suspected that. You can sit with surprising ease. Hang in there."

Before Charlie could leave Jamie pushed a pack of sandwiches in his hand before putting a plate down in front of Harry and sitting down with his own lunch.

"You didn't have to make me lunch Jamie."

"Yes, I did. I make lunch for Dora and myself every day. You are here so you get lunch. It's a burger, with fried egg on top. A little comfort food has never hurt anyone."

Harry smiled softly at Jamie before taking a bite of his burger. He had to admit the food was making him feel slightly better. When Harry was done, Dobby popped in to take his plate. "Dobby has hid Master Viktor's socks."

"You did what?" Harry asked.

"Dobby took one sock of each pair." Dobby popped out and Harry was almost on the floor laughing.

"What's so funny?" Jamie asked.

"Viktor hates when socks don't match. Dobby took one of each, so none of them will match. I won't lie, it feels good to have even my elf look out for me."

"You have a lot of people, and creatures, who love you Harry. Don't forget that. Do you want me to bring Jason tomorrow? Nora has lessons so she can't come."

"Could you? I'd love to just play with him. He'll have to leave after lunch though, it's a short day so my fathers will be here after that."

"That's fine, he should be at home for his nap anyway and Jules has started to teach him part of the day."

When Henry popped in that afternoon, Harry was on the couch reading and just looked at him. "I'm fine, no he doesn't need hexed or beaten up, someone already did that."

Henry didn't say anything and just pulled Harry off the couch and into a bone crushing hug. "Eric mirror called me. He asked if he would get in trouble if he tripped Viktor in the hallway. I told him what he did in school is up to the school to deal with. I've helped Dora with the press release, it'll be in Prophet in the morning. I just wanted to come here and give you a hug. None of us expected this."

Harry shook his head. "He's still a good friend, it's what makes it so hard. We could have remained friends even without dating if he had just talked to me, but he had to go and cheat. I really want to just punch something or someone."

Dora walked into the room in workout clothes and nodded. "Then it's good I'm done for today. Go put on workout clothes. You and I are going to practice your fighting skills."

Harry left the room at a run to go change and Dora turned to Henry. "Thank you for your help."

"It's no problem. You seem to know what he needs."

Dora shrugged. "It's how I felt when my boyfriend cheated on me. It allows you to let a lot of energy out. Most wizards could duel and get the same effect, but with Harry's magical power it wouldn't be as satisfying."

"I'm ready," Harry said as he came running back into the room.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

At Hogwarts Viktor was having a terrible day. Younger students were tripping him, older students kept sending stinging hexes at him. The Ravenclaw Prefects had told him of his new restrictions. He knew he should have talked to Harry, but he had chickened out and then had taken his chance with the potion. He didn't realize he had been seen not taking the potion.

He felt terrible he had hurt Harry the way he did, and vowed to make it up to him. He wanted to remain friends as they really did get along quite well. Right now he wasn't going to do anything about the fact his backside felt like it had when Karkarof had applied his belt to it. He felt like he deserved it. And once Harry came back, he would make it up to him somehow. Show him he could still be a good friend.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You're pretty good at that Dora," Harry said as they walked back into Black Manor, both of them drenched in sweat.

"It's fun, and a great way to relieve stress. Let's go shower and by then the others should be here for dinner."

Harry spent most of the night working on the assignments he had missed that day. It didn't go unnoticed that he had a constant supply of tea and his favorite biscuits. He had chosen to work in his office downstairs, wanting to be near people, and it was the first time he had faced the portraits since everything that happened.

"Are you alright sweetheart?" Lily asked.

"I'm fine mom. I just want to focus on my work."

"If you want to talk, we are here," Mrs Potter said.

Harry just nodded and turned to his work, missing the concerned glances the portrait occupants sent each other.

"My Ravenclaws will take care of it," Rowena said with confidence.

Harry just focused on his work. He didn't really want to talk about it. It was embarrassing, and he wondered if others would now stay away from him, thinking that if he wasn't good enough for Viktor Krum he must not be good enough for them. What Harry didn't know was that half the Hogwarts student population was already trying to come up with ways to get his attention.

Severus walked into Harry's office four hours later to see Harry still focusing on his work. "You are still working?"

"I'm done. Just doing some studying on my own now," Harry said without looking up.

Severus walked over and closed the book. "Enough studying for today. Come on, there's tea waiting for you."

Harry snorted. "Dobby has been drowning me in tea today."

"He's very protective of you. Come on, we want to spend time with you as well. You've been hiding since dinner."

"Can we avoid talking about it?"

"Yes. Now lets go."

Harry let himself be guided to the living room, where he promptly landed on Severus' lap. "What? I just want to hold you. So how was your day?"

"It was good. Dora took me out and we did some wrestling and boxing. It made me feel better. Charlie stopped by for lunch. Jamie made me comfort foods. Dobby informed me he took Viktor's socks, only one of each pair, not all of them."

Sirius choked on his laughter. "I knew I loved that elf for a reason. I know you don't want to talk about it, but Viktor has been hexed by half the student population and the other half has been tripping him. Even some of the Slytherins have joined in, but I think they're mostly doing it because they can get away with it. He has not complained about any of it and we haven't caught a single student red handed. Fred and George sent a gift for you."

Sirius waved his wand and soon Harry was holding a wrapped package. When he opened it, he started laughing. "Brilliant! I'm going to hang this up somewhere."

"Is that a toilet seat?" Severus asked, disgust evident on his face.

Harry nodded. "Absolutely. Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"Could you hang this in my lounge?" 

"Yes Master Harry sir."

"Thank you, and could you tell Fred and George where I put it when you're done?"

"Yes Master Harry sir."

"You have strange friends Harry," Severus said with a shaking head. "How did they do that when suspended?" 

"It's the twins. We don't question their methods."

"So Harry, we feel there is something missing from your schedule that we'd like to add," Remus said.

"What is it?" 

"Well, you are great in all magical subjects, but beyond a basic primary education you know nothing about the muggle ones. You don't know basic algebra, or geography, or even chemistry. We would like to use Sunday afternoons to bring you up to speed on those."

"More lessons?"

"Besides practicing what you already know, you aren't learning much new things when it comes to Defense. We've thought you most of what you need to know when it comes to Lordship things. We believe it would really help you if you knew how to survive in the Muggle world as well. It gives you an understanding of them, which will help you in your political endeavours. The world is so much bigger than just the magical portion, yet we don't know any of the things they learn."

Harry sighed. "Who would be my teacher?"

"Jules. She is actually a licensed teacher which is why she homeschools her children."

"Fine, but only on the weekends I have time to spend with my friends on Saturdays. Friday nights and Saturday afternoons are free for homework and friends and if I don't have either of those, Sunday afternoon lessons get cancelled in return."

"Deal," Remus said, glad Harry had agreed so easily. He knew they were asking a lot from him, but he also knew it could really help him in the future. The magical world in general was very behind on anything Muggle related, mostly because none of them had more than a basic primary education.

Harry leaned sideways against Severus' chest. He was sitting sideways, and Severus was rubbing his back in a comforting way. He didn't want to talk, but the small gestures of love and comfort helped him.

"I won't deny that was a pretty good potion," Sirius suddenly said into the silence.

Harry smiled. "It was, wasn't it. Did you see Hermione and Cedric?"

"I was worried they would suffocate," Remus said with a laugh. "I ended up breaking them apart to ensure they lived. Minerva took some of the potion."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "What did she do?"

"Almost burst into song and dance. Professor Smith stopped her."

"Hmmm bummer. If I get suspended I'd at least want to see some return for my investment."

Severus tapped the top of his bum softly. "Just be happy you had that card." 

"I planned on it. You really think I'm stupid enough to play a prank like that otherwise? I knew the magical signature would lead back to me, and I knew what your reaction would be."

"To be honest I'd forgotten about that card," Sirius said.

"Then it's good that I hadn't," Harry said. His eyes were starting to close, and he was comfortable. "Now I can enjoy my suspension."

It didn't take long for Harry to be asleep. Severus smiled down at him, tightening his hold. "I doubt the twins are enjoying their suspension."

Sirius smiled. "I spoke to Molly. After I told her of our agreement with Harry, and how awful Fred and George felt about what happened, she agreed not to ground them. They got spanked but that's it. Knowing them, they are already planning the next one."

The following morning Harry was woken up by an enthusiastic little boy jumping on him. Jamie was grinning in the doorway. "Well good morning little man. Your dad sent you to wake me up?"

"We can play!"

"Yes we can, but I need to get dressed and then eat breakfast. Why don't you go with your dad and I'll be down in a minute?"

Harry played with Jason all morning, and when Jules came to pick him up for lunch, she also dropped off a stack of books. "That's for your lessons."

Harry glared at them and with a wave of his wand they had disappeared, causing Jules to raise an eyebrow. "New rule. No magic while I'm teaching. You are going to learn to do things the muggle way while learning muggle subjects. I took the liberty of getting muggle notebooks, pens and pencils as well. I want the first chapter of each book read when I get here next Sunday for lessons."

"Fine. Give the bill for the supplies and books to Dora, I'll make sure you get paid for them."

"Harry, I know you aren't happy about these lessons, but I promise it won't be all bad."

Harry sighed. "It's not that I'm not happy about them. I know they are right and I need to know more than just magical subjects. But I'm already incredibly busy and I don't like the thought of adding more. You'll find that no matter how much I hate lessons, I'll still do the work."

"I know, and if you are ever too tired to do lessons, just let me know and we'll skip a week, alright? I don't want to overwhelm you. I need to get going, Nora is down for a nap and Jason needs one too by the looks of it. I'll see you next week."

Harry sat down and Jamie put a sandwich in front of him. "She's strict but she means it when she says to to tell her when you're tired. She's not afraid to assign you detention or lines if she feels you deserve it, but if she knows you just need a break she'll be understanding of that."

"I know, dad's the same way. I'm not the greatest at indicating when I need a break, but I'll keep it in mind."

The afternoon was spent going over all his properties with Dora. He also reviewed the financial reports he had received from Gringotts, noticing that he was still filthy rich and his spendings weren't even making a dent. He wrote out the order to have 100,000 each added to Charlie and Bill's vaults. They were now members of a Noble family and ought to act and dress the part. He wasn't surprised when Charlie and Bill stomped into his office an hour later.

"Harry James Potter-Black, we do not need to be paid for your friendship!" Bill said.

Harry locked and warded the door before casting family magic. "You are both members of a Noble family now. You ought to dress and act the part at formal functions. That's all it's for. Use it. Don't use it. I don't care. I'm not paying you for anything, it's a perk of being family."

"A wardrobe would justify 1,000. Not 100,000."

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "It doesn't make a difference to me. Use the rest for whatever you want as long as it doesn't interfere with my political agenda. Or ignore it's there. Whatever makes you feel better."

Charlie sank down in a chair and shook his head. "Do you have any idea of the shock we went through when we got to Gringotts to deposit our paychecks and take out funds for the weekend, only to find out we have way more than we ever thought possible?'

"You should get one of those debit cards. That way you don't have to go there every week. The Ministry can deposit your paycheck directly into the bank too."

"I should do that. Besides that, did you know the entire single wizarding world is thinking of ways to get you to date them? You are officially the most eligible bachelor out there."

"Most of them are probably highly inappropriate," Harry said with a slight laugh. "I got a note from Gringotts that they were fielding a higher than usual number of letters infused with love potion."

"It will be harder to avoid when you go back to school."

"I know. I'm half tempted to pretend date someone just to get them off my back."

Charlie chuckled. "I don't recommend it. It'll be fine, you have plenty of friends who will protect you. Just keep casting charms so you don't get a love potion by accident."

A knock on the door had Harry cancelling the family magic and unlocking it. Sirius stuck his head in, looking apologetic. "It's time for dinner, I didn't mean to interrupt."

"It's fine dad, we were done."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So Hogsmeade first? We can do both the Black and Gryffindor cottages there."

Severus nodded, and soon they were all apparating to just outside the Black cottage. Harry put his hand on the wards, and they watched it shimmer. Bill cast a detection charm and nodded. "Basic protection charms bound by family magic but not unplottable."

Harry let everyone into the property before turning to Bill. "How do I make it unplottable?"

"You simply cast the charm. It's not incredibly hard but does require some magical power. Only Lord Black can cast it on Black property."

"Let's explore the cottage and then I will cast the charm."

Harry liked the charming cottage. It was a decent size, with two floors. It was completely brick. As soon as they walked in they were greeted by Bonny, the elf. "Hi Bonny. We are just here to look around."

"Yes Master Black sir."

Harry noticed that while this cottage looked quaint on the outside, it still had formal furniture inside. Besides the four beds and three baths, there was a small library and a small office, a formal parlor, and the kitchen. "If anyone ever lived here they'd need to upgrade furniture," Harry said as they were walking out.

Sirius laughed and nodded. "My mother redecorated all the properties. I can't say I disagree. Come on, let's cast the charms and head over to the Gryffindor property."

It took a couple minutes for Bill to teach Harry the charms required, but once he had succeeded everyone, except Harry, quite literally saw the property disappear before their eyes. "That's always fascinating to watch," Remus said. "Bill, can you still see the charms guarding it?"

Bill shook his head. "I can see there are charms, but I can no longer see what they are or what they are hiding. So while I know a wizard has been in the area, that's about all I know. And to be honest, that is something I can tell even if a big duel has happened somewhere and some spells have hit buildings or the ground, so I wouldn't even know for sure if it's an unplottable property."

"Interesting. I'd love to study how that spell actually works," Remus said.

"We all would, but it's restricted. You can't access that information, for obvious reasons. The Goblins guard it. So where is the Gryffindor property?"

They walked about five houses down before stopping. "This is it," Severus said.

Harry immediately led everyone through the wards and they went inside. He noticed big fluffy couches in the living room, but otherwise the setup was similar to the Black cottage. "Looks like the same amount of rooms, except this has a Potions lab in the basement and only two bathrooms. And comfortable looking furniture," Harry said with a smile. "It's very clean so I'm assuming there's an elf. I can't remember what the listing said."

"Master Gryffindor, Titus is here to serve you," a small elf said while peeking around the doorway.

"Ahh Titus, thank you! You have done a wonderful job keeping this property maintained."

Titus perked up and came into the room properly. They all knew it had been many years since anyone had lived in the cottage, so they weren't surprised by the elf's hesitance. "I won't be living here, but I go to school at Hogwarts so I might visit from time to time. If you ever need anything, you come find me, alright?"

"Yes Master Gryffindor sir."

"Everyone ready to leave?"

Upon everyone's nod, Harry went outside and once again made the property unplottable. He really didn't want anyone to be able to find any of his houses. "So the only British property left is Grimmauld Place."

"Yes, and I'm not looking forward to going there. It's where I grew up," Sirius said with a shudder.

Harry gave Sirius a sympathetic glance, understanding completely, before the group apparated. "It looks old."

Sirius nodded. "It is. And it was always really dark inside. It's huge, with eleven bedrooms, eight baths, a library, potions lab and office. There's no yard though, just a small courtyard out back."

Harry opened the door and soon they were in a dark hallway. "This house needs cleaned. Don't we have two elves here?" 

"Yes, Kreacher and Jairo. They are both loyal to my mother, who is a portrait now I believe."

"I see. Kreacher! Jairo!"

Two older house elves appeared and glared at him in contempt. Harry raised an eyebrow when they didn't greet him. "I see no greeting is going to happen? Very well. The next time I come here I want this house to be spotless. No dust, no dirt. I also want all the wall painted white, not this filthy black wallpaper. I order you to do all that. Is that clear?"

"Yes Master Black," Jairo barely managed to get out.

"Get out of my sight and get started."

Harry started up the stairs first, assuming he'd get to the downstairs when they were done. He didn't get far however, as the first floor landing housed all the portraits. "BLOODTRAITORS!"

Harry whirled around and looked at the portrait in shock. "And who are you?" 

"That's my mother," Sirius said with a grimace.

"YOU! YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THIS HOUSE! YOU WERE CONVICTED!"

"I do not have access but my son does as he is Lord Black. Harry, I'd like you to meet my mother, Walbura Black."

"I'd say it's a pleasure to meet you ma'am but you called us blood traitors. As I am now Lord Black, I have the power to remove you from this wall. Do you wish to stay here?"

"You can't remove me you filthy scum. You are not the proper owner of this house!" Many of the other portraits along the wall started muttering in agreement. Harry, who knew Sirius had grown up in an abusive household, didn't care for the portrait one bit.

"Sirius, would you like her to stay or be moved?" 

"I have no intention of ever talking to her."

"Good." Harry silenced all the portraits before taking them off the wall, one by one. He left Walbura for last. Once he was done, he called Dobby and had him put all the portraits in the main Black vaults. Dobby was the only elf with access to all the vaults. The other elves only had access to smaller vaults with household funds to use for upkeep of the properties.

"Now we can explore the house. Sirius, I understand if you don't want to come along."

"I'll come. I'm just happy you got rid of that portrait."

"I don't like her for what she did to you. As much as I dislike her, her portrait is an heirloom. If it wasn't, I'd burn it."

They finished with all the upstairs rooms fairly quickly, as it was just bedrooms and bathrooms. Harry was glad he had given the order to clean, as the whole house needed it. When they got downstairs Harry smiled at the library. "Dobby!"

"Yes Master Harry sir?"

"I'm assuming no problems with the portraits?"

"No Master Harry sir."

"Are any of these books at Black Manor?"

"Some are, sir. But many books here are Dark and many have curses on them."

"I see. Thank you."

"Sirius, how bad are the curses?"

"Not major, can be remedied with simple potions. We can spend some time here after the war and clean them all, but for now I recommend leaving them."

"Alright, we can do that. This entire house is filthy, I hope Kreacher and Jairo obey and start cleaning."

"They have to obey Harry," Sirius said.

"Hmm seems that they didn't care so much one way or another. We'll see. If they don't, I'll get an elf to oversee them. Let's get out of here, this place gives me the creeps. I'm sorry you had to grow up here."

Once again Harry made the property unplottable. The rest of the group had remained silent at Grimmauld Place, each of them disgusted by it. "Alright. Paris next?"

Severus nodded and pulled out the first portkey. They each took hold before feeling the sickening tug behind their belly buttons. They were deposited right in front of a nice looking building. "According to the papers it's the top floor."

They made their way inside and to the elevators. "It's a magical building. Even the elevator is operated by magic," Bill said. When they got to their floor, Bill nodded. "Wards. You can't get off the elevator without tripping them."

Harry let them all through before letting them all into the home. He smiled when he saw two cheerful elves appear. "We is Sairen and Emily Master Black sir."

"Well hello Sairen and Emily. We are just here to look at the house. Would you like to show us around?"

The home was beautiful in Harry's opinion. It had an open floor plan with light, neutral colors. While expensive looking, the furniture also looked relatively comfortable. Besides the living room and kitchen, there were four bedrooms, three baths, an office and a potions lab. Everything was large and bright.

"This place is beautiful," Harry said.

"I could spend a lot of time here," Charlie agreed. "Maybe it's because we just came from that awful place but this place makes me happy."

Sirius nodded. "I always loved this place. I think it's why mother never took us here."

"My mother has told me about this house. She loved coming here as a child," Dora said.

"Feel free to bring her here sometime, but only without Draco," Harry said. "Bill, how do I ward this place? I can hardly make it unplottable."

"Actually, since it's the top floor, you can. If someone tried to come here, the elevator would stop at the floor below. I don't recommend it though, as people would notice a whole floor disappearing."

"What wards do you recommend?" 

"They are already on the doors. They simply prevent anyone from exiting the elevator when you aren't here, and unless you have them keyed to the wards, they get confused and leave the second they do arrive."

"And by allowing you all through, I keyed you to the wards?" 

"Not exactly. It just made it so those charms don't work on us. We still can't enter without your permission, but we can at least walk up to the door and knock."

"Alright, I'll leave them as is. Sairen!"

"Yes Master Black sir?"

"I'm assuming you are familiar with Grimmauld Place? I have ordered Kreacher and Jairo to clean it spotless and paint the walls white. Could you go over there when you are done with duties here and make sure they are doing it? I don't want you doing anything yourself, you are there to supervise." 

"Yes Master Black sir, I'd be honored." For a house elf to be asked to supervise elves at another property without doing any work themselves, was considered a great honor because it meant their master was happy with them. She knew she was chosen over Emily because she was older, but it made her happy because they had please the new Master Black.

"Alright, New York next?"

"New York, and then home. We will do Sydney and Black Island tomorrow," Severus said.

Soon they found themselves in front of a huge building with a doorman. They were let into the building by a doorman and when Harry asked what floor, the doorman quietly told him the penthouse. "Magical?" Harry asked Bill once in the elevator.

"Yes. And the doorman was clearly briefed on the new Lord Black."

They opened the door into a beautiful entrance way, complete with two elves who introduced themselves as Erida and Rocky. The whole house was done in neutral colors with an open floor plan and a lot of windows. The six bedrooms, four baths, office and potions lab were all fairly standard without any personal touches. "This place is great. I could see myself spending time in the city and then coming here to relax in the evening."

"You have that backwards Harry," Charlie said with a grin. "You should relax here during the day and go into the city at night."

Everyone laughed. "Maybe my seventeenth birthday?"

"Young man, you do not need to think about your seventeenth birthday. Besides, drinking age is twenty one in New York," Severus said sternly. "And stop giving my son ideas. How about we head back to Black Manor. It's dinner time and Jamie is expecting us."

"You know papa, next time we go to New York, you should plan for us to eat here."

"I'll keep that in mind. Now let's get back."

"You do realize that was my asking if we could stay here for dinner?"

"I am fully aware of that. But we are not wasting food that Jamie spent time cooking. It's my fault for not thinking about it, but we are not staying."

Harry crossed his arms and glared at Severus. "Then why don't you go back and we'll come back later. After I've seen the city. I've never been here!"

Severus pinched the bridge of his nose. "We only have one portkey."

"Then stay or make another portkey. Floo call Jamie and let him know. I doubt he'll mind. We can warm the food up tomorrow."

Severus looked at Sirius and Remus for help, and Sirius took pity on him. "Harry, we'll come back plenty of times. Today, we are going home."

"But I want to stay!"

It was clear that Harry was about to go into full blown tantrum mode. Sirius had expected some form of breakdown at some point, as that was what Harry did. He pretended to be fine until he lost it, usually in the form of a huge tantrum. "Harry James. You are bordering on disrespectful yelling at us like that. Now you can either take hold of the portkey and go voluntarily, or I can force the issue and you can go straight to bed after dinner," Sirius said sternly.

Harry took hold of the portkey and soon found himself back at Black Manor. He stomped to the kitchen, and when he saw dinner was a simple baked pasta he huffed in frustration. "We could have warmed this up like I said we could! This is not that special that I had to miss a dinner in New York for it!"

Sirius took Harry by the arm and lifted him out of his chair before also picking up his plate of food. "Excuse us." He walked Harry to his room and put the plate down on the table in the sitting area. "You can eat up here and then go to bed. You are in an awful mood so maybe sleeping it off will help. Goodnight."

Sirius heard something hit the door after he closed it, and had a suspicion that it was the food. He wasn't going to give Harry the satisfaction of going back in there and simply walked back to the kitchen. "Sorry about that. Jamie, don't take it personally, it wasn't directed at you. We are leaving after breakfast tomorrow but don't worry about cooking dinner, we'll be eating elsewhere."

"Is Harry alright?" Charlie asked, looking concerned.

"This is what he does. He pretends he's fine and then blows up over something small. He could have asked if we could go back to New York tomorrow for dinner and I would have said yes. It would have solved the issue. But when he gets in those moods, he doesn't think about solutions just about problems. I've sent him to bed, but fully intend to check on him in a bit."

"Do you mind if I go up?" Charlie asked. "I've been through what he has, and might be able to relate somewhat."

Sirius nodded. "That's fine."

"So are we going to New York tomorrow?" Remus asked.

"Actually I was thinking if we do Black Island last we can have dinner at sunset on the beach."

Dora's eyes lit up. "I've seen pictures of that sunset. It's gorgeous."

Sirius nodded. "It is. The Island is unplottable, you can only portkey in if you are on the same portkey as Lord Black, and only Lord Black can apparate there. It provides a lot of privacy, but if you want to spend time with other people there is a resort you can get to in about twenty minutes by boat on the next island over."

"We should spend our summers there," Severus said with a smile.

"Harry would never be away from his friends that long. But we might be able to vacation there. It depends on where Harry wants to go. I'm going to the living room, maybe do some reading," Remus said with a smile.

Charlie went upstairs to see if Harry was alright. When he walked into the room he noticed the shattered plate and food remains and raised an eyebrow before quickly cleaning the mess. He didn't see Harry in the living area and knocked on his bedroom door. After not getting an answer he opened the door and immediately rushed to the bed. There Harry was, crying hard. It was clear he had cast a silencing charm and when Charlie broke through he heard the heart wrenching sobs. He quickly sat on other side of the bed and leaned against the headboard before pulling Harry into his arms. "It's alright Harry, let it all out."

Harry cried in Charlie's arms for almost an hour, and Charlie called Dobby to get a calming draught. Harry managed to pull himself together before Charlie gave him the potion, and he looked up in embarrassment. "Don't be embarrassed Harry. I felt the same way when my boyfriend cheated. You feel like there's something wrong with you that he would do that instead of just tell you. You feel humiliated that everyone knows. And you're heartbroken over losing someone you truly cared about."

Harry looked slightly surprised before nodding. "Nobody seems to understand that."

"I know, but I don't think they can unless it's happened to them. Dora understands. And it makes it even harder when you don't want to lose him as a friend."

"I still want to be friends with him. Even if we aren't dating, that doesn't mean we didn't get along."

"If you don't want to lose him, I don't think you will. And it's alright to be upset. You don't have to pretend to be fine, when you just want to scream or cry, especially when around family and friends. Let us carry some of the burden. Let us be the shoulder you cry on."

"Thank you," Harry said softly. He remained where he was against Charlie's side with his arm around him. Charlie called Dobby and asked for a dreamless sleep, which he handed to Harry. "I'm not going anywhere but I think you should take this. A good night's sleep will help. Do you need dinner first?"

Harry shook his head. "I'm not really hungry."

"I'll accept that if you eat a big breakfast tomorrow, alright?"

Harry nodded and quickly swallowed the potion. Once he was asleep Charlie gently put him down on the pillow and covered him with the blankets. He cancelled the silencing charms and left the room, fully prepared for the questions he was going to get downstairs. "He is fine. He cried himself into exhaustion. I gave him dreamless sleep so he can have a good night's sleep. I think he's a little better."

"Did he need the calming draught?" Severus asked.

"I shouldn't be surprised that you know when a potion is taken from your stores," Charlie said with a grin. "And no, he didn't. I thought he did for a minute there but he calmed down before I gave it to him."

It didn't take long for everyone to start heading to bed. Walking through all the houses that day had been exhausting. Severus however did not go to his room. He conjured a recliner in Harry's bedroom, before sitting down in it to watch Harry sleep. He hated that Harry had to go through this, and he didn't want to leave him alone. He didn't realize when he fell asleep, or when Dobby came in and covered him with a blanket.

When Harry woke up, he was warm. Too warm. He tried to move only to notice he was blocked in with Remus on one side and Sirius on the other. He also noticed Severus in the recliner, all fast asleep. He wondered what had woken up, only to notice Charlie and Bill in the doorway. They smiled at the scene in front of them before leaving quietly. Harry let his head fall back down on his pillow and smiled softly. Apparently his fathers had been worried about him, and had decided to come make sure he was alright. It warmed his heart that they cared that much.

Looking at the clock he noticed it was still early, and he slowly dozed off again. The next time he woke up it was to Severus waking all three of them. Harry smiled at all of them. "Thank you. It can't be comfortable to sleep with three in a bed, or in a recliner, and you did just in case I needed someone. Now we should get down to breakfast. I promised Charlie I'd eat a large breakfast since I missed dinner."

After breakfast Charlie took Harry aside and lifted his chin up to look him in the eye. "You alright now?"

Harry nodded. "I'm fine. Thank you."

"Are you truly fine or you just saying that?"

"I'm truly fine. I think I just needed to let it all out."

"Alright. If at any point you are not fine, I want you to come talk to me, alright?" Charlie said. Harry wasn't sure if he'd ever seen Charlie so serious.

"I promise. Now come on, we have Australia waiting for us."

Since the seasons were opposite in Australia, they arrived in the scorching hot sun and immediately rid themselves of their heavy winter clothes. Harry smiled at the house in front of them and quickly let everyone in. The house had beautiful flower beds all around, and the house itself was a nice two story, similar to all the other ones around. The house elf, Mona, greeted them before they even made it through the door, and excitedly she started showing them around. There were five bedrooms and three baths upstairs, an office, potions lab and library downstairs. The large living room had big windows that let in all the sunlight from outside. "This house could do with redecorating as well. The bright sunny house combined with heavy, old furniture, just doesn't mix," Harry observed.

"How far are we from town?" Remus asked.

"If I remember correctly, about a mile from the shops. This is a quiet neighborhood. We are also about a mile or so from the beach," Sirius said thoughtfully.

"Can we go to the beach?" Harry asked.

Sirius shook his head. "Black Island is practically one big beach so you can enjoy it there. It's also more private as only the Black Lord can give access to the island."

"Alright, let's go there then," Harry said enthusiastically. "Let me make this property unplottable and then we can go. I'm ready to relax."

It didn't take Harry long to finish the warding, as he had done it several times now, and soon they were all holding onto the portkey for Black Island. Harry pushed some of his magic into it to allow them to portkey there, and soon he found himself staring at a huge mansion. His mouth dropped open and he looked at Sirius. "You have got to be kidding me. This place is huge!"

"And the whole island is yours," Sirius said with a grin. "Miles and miles of beach. The house has fourteen bedrooms, eleven baths, potions lab and office. Of course it has a large dining room, kitchen and living room. As you can see the patio has a lot of seating. If you turn around, you'll see the ocean."

Harry was speechless. The mansion was made of beautiful stone, and was absolutely stunning. He turned around and thought the view was perfect. He couldn't imagine what sunset must be like here. "Let's go explore."

"We're staying here for the rest of the day, including dinner. I want you to experience sunset here," Sirius said.

Harry grinned widely, and after greeting the three elves Fergus, Julie and Holly, they got the tour. One side of the house was clearly for family, with each room large and with private bath. The two master suites had private balconies as well. The other side was clearly for guests with the rooms plainly done, some with private baths, others sharing a bath. Here many of the rooms had two double beds in them, as opposed to the king sized beds in the family rooms. Harry wasn't certain but he thought he counted over twenty beds. The living room was huge and looked out over the beach on one side and the woods on the other. The dining room was large, but Harry wasn't surprised considering how many people could stay at the house. Once they had made their way back to the patio and Fergus had served them drinks, Harry sighed wistfully. "Can we just stay here? Pretend the war doesn't exist and live out the rest of our lives in sunshine and luxury? All our friends could live here as well and we still wouldn't ever have to see each other if we didn't want to."

"It would be nice, wouldn't it," Bill said with a smile. "But I know you well enough to know you'd never hide away from a fight, especially now that you've heard the prophecy."

"True. It is unfortunate. Hey Bill, I noticed some dark artifacts at Grimmauld Place. Could I hire you to go through that place once it's cleaned and get rid of anything dark and remove curses from everything that's cursed?"

"You don't have to pay me, I'll do it voluntarily."

Harry shook his head. "No, it might be a lot of work and I want you compensated for that. I'll have Henry prepare a contract. So who wants to go swimming?"

It didn't take long for everyone to have picked a room and have changed into the swimsuits provided by the elves. Harry was the first one back down to the beach and he ran straight for the water, diving in when it got deep enough.

Sirius, Severus and Remus were standing on the beach, watching Charlie, Bill and Dora go after him. Soon an all out water battle ensued. "It's good to see him so carefree and happy," Sirius said. "It's why I loved this place. It's so large I could have fun without being near my family. It's like this peace comes over you as soon as you arrive. You two ready to join them?"

Severus hesitantly shook his head. "I'd rather not go in deep."

"Why not?" Remus asked.

Severus didn't answer but it was clear he was slightly embarrassed. "Severus, do you know how to swim?"

"I do in a pool, but I've always struggled with the current of the ocean."

"Would you rather us go over there and swim calmly?"

Severus nodded and the three of them walked further down the beach before getting in the water. The tired about an hour later and found beach chairs to lay on while watching the others. Harry had managed to get on Bill's back and was hanging on for dear life while Bill tried to shake him off. When Bill finally did, Harry went flying and came up spluttering and laughing.

They watched Harry create a wandless shield around himself, and start splashing everyone else while they couldn't hit him with water. Charlie figured it out first and went the old fashioned route, launching himself at Harry and tackling him. While Charlie went after Harry, Dora and Bill were off to the side having their own struggle.

"They'd make a good couple," Sirius said.

"Who?" Severus asked, confused.

"Bill and Dora. There is definitely mutual attracted there, it's just a question of whether or not they'll admit it."

"I think they just did," Remus laughed. They all watched as Bill and Dora were kissing. They also knew the moment Charlie and Harry noticed. Harry conjured a huge bucket and with Charlie grinning widely, he filled it with water and levitated it over Dora and Bill. With a mischievous glint in his eyes, he upended the bucket before quickly running out of the water.

Charlie was left behind, laughing, while Bill and Dora looked indignant. "I'll get you back for that you little brat!" Dora yelled.

"You had to come up for air sometime!" Harry yelled right back from the shoreline. Harry walked over to his fathers, and plopped down right on Severus' lap.

"Hey! I had just gotten dry!"

"Oh well. We're on a beach, water is part of it."

"Not when I'm on the beach, where it's dry. Are you having fun?"

Harry nodded. "I love it here. I am however getting hungry."

"Water will do that to you. Come on, we can all go and have lunch on the patio."

Apparently the elves had been expecting them to come in, because soon they are all eating ham sandwiches with a fruit salad. "We should play water polo after this," Harry said.

"What is that?" Charlie asked.

"It's a muggle sport. You have two teams, and a goal on each side. You try to score in the other goal by throwing the ball. I've never played but I've seen it on TV and it looks fun."

"Let's relax for about an hour after lunch and then we can play," Remus said. "It's not good to swim right after eating. We have an odd number of people so I'll sit this one out."

Harry nodded in agreement. "My team is dad and Charlie."

"Why don't I get to pick?" Dora asked.

"I just assumed you wanted on a team with Bill. If we had one more player I'd take dad and papa but I can't."

"Why would I want on a team with Bill?" 

"Because you were making out a few minutes ago. I'll take you instead of dad if you want to switch."

"No, I'm fine."

"You'd trade me out that quickly?" Sirius asked in mock indignity.

Harry just shrugged. "Dora is younger. She moves faster."

"Are you calling me old?"

"Yes, I am. You might not act it at times, but you are middle aged now."

Nobody was surprised when Harry was suddenly hit with a tickling hex, and was on the ground laughing. "Cramp! Dad!"

"Fine, I'll have mercy on you. Little brat. Now come here so I can give you a proper smack for your impertinence."

Harry found his way back to his seat and grinned. "I'm not suicidal."

Suddenly Harry jumped up and ran down the beach, Sirius right behind him. Everyone on the patio simply looked after them, smiling. Harry was faster, but eventually Sirius had him cornered and tackled him, proceeding to tickle him. The group heard their laughs and Harry's screams for help. When the two came back to the table, Harry was rubbing his backside with a scowl on his face.

"You actually smacked him?" Bill asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh stop it Harry, I did not smack you," Sirius said, shaking his head in exasperation. Harry laughed and plopped back down in his chair before gulping down his glass of water.

"Oh fine. He didn't smack me. I'm ready for ice cream, I wonder if we have any. Julie!"

"Yes Master Black sir?"

"Do we have any ice cream?"

"Yes Master Black sir. We have vanilla, chocolate, mint chocolate chip and moosetracks. We also have caramel, strawberries, nuts and chocolate fudge for toppings."

Harry grinned widely. "Could I have a bowl with mint chocolate chip and moosetracks, drizzled with chocolate fudge?"

"Yes Master Black. Would anyone else like ice cream?"

Everyone quickly ordered what they wanted, and soon they all had bowls of ice cream in front of them. Nobody failed to notice that Harry's bowl was the largest. "Thank you Julie! This looks amazing."

Julie beamed at the praise from Lord Black before disappearing. "I'm surprised they have ice cream. It's not like we announced that we were coming."

"Yes we did," Severus said. "I sent Dobby here so they had time to get supplies."

"Oh, I suppose that makes sense. This moosetracks ice cream is delicious. It has little frozen peanut butter cups in it and everything. I don't think we have that in England, do we?"

Sirius shook his head. "Fergus has always made sure it was here. It has been my favorite ever since he introduced me to it. Fergus didn't like my mother, and he knew how they treated me, so he always made sure we had all my favorites whenever we stayed here. He has always been my favorite elf."

Harry smiled. "Well then I like him even more. What about Julie and Holly?"

"They were just elflings back then. We used to have Jada here. Fergus and Jada are Julie and Holly's parents. Jada died many years ago due to an accident, and Julie and Holly were still in training the last time I was here."

"Well it looks like he did an excellent job with them. How were the other elves growing up?"

"We didn't go to the other properties much, and the elves there didn't go out of their way to help any of us. They just followed orders and that was it."

"I'm going to the bathroom and after that I'm going to lay on the beach and work on my tan," Harry announced. "Let me know when you all are ready for water polo."

Harry walked inside and up to his room, where he quickly called Fergus. "Fergus, dad told me how good you were to him when he was younger, and how you always did special things for him. I want you to keep doing them, alright? There's no need to hide it from me. You are his elf as much as you are mine. If you ever need anything, you just let me know and I'll make it happen. He told me you are his favorite elf, and that means something."

"Thank you Master Black. You is good Master. All the elves heard from other elves and from Dobby that you are good Master. We are happy to serve you."

Harry smiled. "As long as you remain loyal to me, I will always be a good Master. And none of you are allowed to punish yourselves."

"Thank you Master. May I punish my children?"

Harry chuckled. "I think they would like me to say no, but yes, you may."

Fergus smiled too before nodding. "Thank you. When Master Sirius was little I would bring cream after he was punished. We don't have any, should I be making more?"

Harry now full out laughed. "You just assuming I'll get in trouble? And no, you won't be needing more. I do not get punished hard enough to need cream."

Fergus almost sighed in relief. "That is good Master Black. Is there anything else?"

"Do we have any nets or a ball that can be used for water polo?"

"No, but Holly can go to the store and buy that?"

"Yes please, if you could. Thank you."

Fergus bowed and quickly left. Harry used the bathroom and headed down to the beach. There were already enough beach chairs lined up, half of them occupied. Harry chose the chair in between Bill and Charlie. He noticed Sirius and Remus were on an extra wide chair together. "You and Dora should follow their example," Harry joked.

Bill glared at Harry, and Harry actually shrunk into his chair a little. "Young man, one more comment and you will find out it's not a good idea to make me angry."

Charlie tapped Harry's arm and nodded. "I'd listen to him. Last time he told me that and I didn't listen I ended up scrubbing the bathroom floor without magic."

Harry looked at Bill and glared right back. "There's no need to get your knickers in a twist, I'm just joking."

He heard Charlie sigh behind him while Bill got up and pulled Harry from his chair. "Let's go for a walk."

They passed Severus who looked at them in confusion. "What's going on with them?" He asked Charlie, who was closest to him.

"Bill lost his patience with Harry. He has been swamped at work lately and it makes him a little more short tempered. He warned Harry, but Harry didn't heed the warning. Harry is either getting a stern talking to, a sore bottom or some manual labor."

"Should I intervene?"

Charlie shook his head. "Bill won't really hurt him, merely ensure Harry knows that when he gives him a last warning, he needs to listen to it. Bill knows when he has a shorter fuse and is really good about warning when he's reaching his limit. I learned long ago to listen to his warnings, now Harry will know as well."

Harry and Bill returned thirty minutes later, neither of them wanting to discuss what had happened. The fact that Bill had his arm around Harry's shoulder indicated they were fine, and nobody asked further to find out details.

When Holly came out with the water polo supplies it was quickly set up. Harry had a blast, and so did everyone else if the cheers, laughs and shouts were anything to go by. They didn't notice the elves who were watching from the patio. "Master Sirius has finally found family," Fergus said softly, a tear trickling down his face.

"He is happy," Julie said with a smile.

Fergus nodded. "He deserves nothing less. And he is raising a wonderful young man. Come on, let's get everything ready for s'mores tonight. I think Master Harry will like it."

As the sun was starting to go down, and the group had just finished dinner, Fergus announced they had build a fire out on the beach, and that Julie was out there with supplies for s'mores. The excitement in Harry's eyes brought a smile to Fergus' face, and he laughed when Harry ran off in the direction of the fire. It made all the effort they had put into getting everything ready worth it.

The adults followed at a slower pace, and arrived when Harry was already roasting his first marshmallow while watching the sunset. "Dad, I really don't want to leave."

"We have to pup. We'll be back, I promise."

Harry nodded and continued watching the sunset, now eating his marshmallow with chocolate and cracker, getting it all over his face. A few hours later Sirius announced they really had to get going and Harry shook his head. "Harry, we have to go. We all have school in the morning and we have to get back before curfew."

Harry shook his head and walked a few steps away before taking flight as Lightning. The rest of the group made their way to the patio to get their belongings, while Severus took to the sky as well and flew after Lightning. Soon the two were back on the ground and Severus made Harry transform back. "Young man, we are going back. We have to get back to school, even if we'd all rather stay here. You can't hide forever. Now I'm going to give you one last chance to walk to the patio, before you walk there with a sore bum."

"But I don't want to go."

"I know you don't want to face your friends after what happened, and you can go straight to your dorm if you want, but we have to get back. Do you need me to count?"

Harry shook his head and started walking towards the patio. He said goodbye to the elves, and soon they had portkeyed to the gates of Hogwarts. Dora, Charlie and Bill said their goodbyes and apparated away, while Harry, Sirius, Severus and Remus walked up to the castle. Sirius walked with Harry to the Gryffindor dorms. "Do you need me to walk in with you or are you alright?"

"I'll be fine. It's why I'm going in this way and not the Ravenclaw dorms. I still say hiding is a better option."

Sirius smiled and ruffled Harry's hair before watching him walk through the portrait hole. Harry had barely made it halfway through the common room when he found himself with a mouth full of bushy hair. "I'm so glad you're back! Come sit. How are you?"

Harry noticed the twins, Neville, Alex and Dudley there as well. He reluctantly sat down and gave a smile. "I'm alright. Spending the day in Australia and then the Caribbean will do that to a person."

Dudley's eyes widened significantly. "In one day?"

"Magic Dudley. We spent the weekend inspecting my properties. How much trouble did you two get into?" Harry asked the twins.

"Mum's spoon, but that's it," Fred said.

"I'm sorry. I should have told them you weren't involved."

George shrugged. "It's no big deal. We get mum's spoon regularly. How about you?"

"Used my get out of punishment card, so nothing. I spend Thursday doing nothing, then Friday morning I hung out with Jason. Saturday we visited Hogsmeade, London, France and New York, and today Australia and Caribbean. Not bad for a suspension. So what's been going on here?"

"Well, Viktor got hexed a lot on Thursday. We were ordered to leave him alone by Friday, and outside of classes nobody has really seen him. Most girls and boys are contemplating how to get you alone or how to slip you a love potion," Hermione said.

"Ginny was visited by dad and told if she even tries anything, she'll be disowned," Fred said.

"Hermione got detention for her making out session with Cedric," Alex grinned.

Harry laughed while Hermione flushed bright red. "Well as much fun as this is, I need to get to bed."

"I'll come with you," Alex said.

Once changed and in bed, Alex turned to look at Harry. "Are you really alright?"

Harry turned to look back and smiled. "Yeah, I am. I wasn't at first and had a pretty big meltdown, but I was surrounded by amazing people all weekend who really helped me through it. I suppose I just never expected him to cheat. That's the biggest thing I struggled with. If he wanted to break up, he should have been man enough to do so. I do think the Headmistress went easier on us when it came to our punishment because of it, so I won't complain about that."

"You got suspended. My dad would have ensured I didn't sit down for a week if I got suspended. How is that easy?"

"Well, the downside is it went on my record. I used my one chance to get out of punishment with my dad, otherwise sitting would have been decidedly uncomfortable. But being allowed to go home and have a long weekend, and escape what was happening here? If she truly wanted me miserable and regret what I did, she would have assigned us detention with Mr Filch for a couple days and we would have lost a bunch of points, which is my case would have meant a bunch of lines to write."

"I suppose you have a good point."

The boys were both just laying there, lost in thought, when there was a knock on their door, followed by Professor Flitwick entering. "Good evening boys, just doing bed check. Harry, glad to see you back. If you need anything, you let me know, alright?"

"Thank you professor."

"Goodnight boys."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Harry, you need to get out of bed or you'll be late for breakfast," Alex said. He'd been trying to get Harry to get up, but he was refusing. He leaned over to notice Harry's forehead was warm. "Dobby!"

"Yes Master Alex sir?"

"Could you get Severus or Sirius please? Tell them I think Harry is sick."

It took almost ten minutes but then Severus came walking in at a fast pace. He walked over to Harry, who was now shivering in his bed. "Thank you for summoning me Alex. It appears he is running a fever. You may go down to breakfast, I will send Dobby once I know what's wrong with him."

"Yes sir."

"Dobby! Could you get Madame Pomfrey please? After that, inform Professors Flitwick, Black and Lupin of the situation. Thank you."

Severus sat down next to Harry and ran a quick diagnostic. It appeared to just be Wizard's Flu, which while uncomfortable, wasn't serious and would be healed in two days at most. He wasn't surprised when all three men came in at the same time Poppy did.

Poppy ran her scan and nodded. "You are correct, it's Wizard's Flu. He'll need to remain in bed until at least tomorrow night. Also, we need to get his roommate a dose of the potion just in case. He may be moved once if you want him in your quarters or at home. Do you need the potion or do you have some made?"

"I have some at home, thank you. I'm assuming you will take care of his roommate?" Severus asked.

"Yes, I will go do that now. I'd like to see him Wednesday morning before breakfast. If I deem him healthy then, he may return to class. Call me if you need anything else."

"Black Manor or staying here?" Severus asked Sirius and Remus.

"Black Manor," Sirius said. "We can't take off classes, no matter how much we want to. At Black Manor Dobby and Dora can take care of him, and Jamie can make sure he has soups and such to eat. If we give Dora a dose of potion she won't be affected by him. We should all take a dose since we're around him and will be around him more before he gets better."

Severus nodded and called for Dobby. "Dobby, get Wizards' Flu potion. I need vials for all of us, and get Dora to take one. Tell her Harry has the flu and will come home. Once you're done, please come back here. I'll need you to pop Harry to his bed at Black Manor."

Once they had all taken their potions, Filius left to prepare for classes while Severus helped Harry swallow his potion. "It's always something with him, isn't it?"

Sirius and Remus couldn't help but agree, and when Dobby returned they let him pop all of them to Black Manor. Dora was waiting for them and they quickly tucked Harry into bed.

"Alright, all of you get back to work. I'll take care of him. I've already called mum and she said she'd come by just before lunch to check on him. By then he can have another dose of potion and he should be eating something. Now shoo."

Dobby popped the three adults back to Hogwarts, as it was faster than having to walk up from the gates, before he was instructed to inform Harry's friends. They all worried about Harry, and when they arrived at Black Manor for dinner, Andromeda was there to intercept them. "He needs rest, and he won't get it if you three are fussing over him. Have some dinner, after that I'll allow you to briefly visit him and see if you can get him to eat some soup."

They all grumbled but allowed Jamie to serve them dinner, knowing Andromeda would stand her ground. "Jamie can't get it, right?"

"No, Muggles can't get Wizards' Flu. Harry reverts back to a much younger age when sick. He was whining and complaining when awake, and he refused to eat, even going so far as to knock the bowl of soup out of my hands twice."

"You just have to be stern with him," Severus said. "I know he's sick and you can't very well punish him, but a stern tone of voice will probably help."

"Well, you're welcome to try. How did he get the flu anyway? I thought you all spend the weekend in sunshine?"

"I have no idea," Sirius said. "Unless you caught it from someone else, but I can't imagine who."

"I know," Dora said as she walked into the room. "Mum, could you go over to Bill and Charlie's? They both have the flu. Apparently someone in Charlie's department had it."

"I'll go right now. I'll be back in the morning for Harry. I expect you all to keep your visit with him short, he needs sleep. If I find out you disobeyed me in this I'm not too old to assign all of you some extra chores, understood?"

"Yes ma'am," the three men said in chorus. Dora merely laughed.

"That goes for you as well young lady, except you'd get a sore bottom."

Dora's laugh disappeared and she nodded that she understood. They all finished their dinner quickly before Severus accepted a bowl of soup from Jamie and they made their way upstairs.

"Finally! I've been waiting for someone to come for ages!" Harry complained as soon as they walked in.

"Young man, watch your tone. I have some soup here and you're going to eat it, after that you will take your potion and get some sleep."

"I don't want soup! And I've been sleeping all day, I want to go downstairs!"

"Harry James," Severus said sternly. "You might be too sick to punish now but you keep up this attitude and you're going to be in big trouble once you're better. You are going to eat this soup. You will take your potion and you will get some sleep. I will not have you risking your health over something so silly. And you know how I punish you risking your health, correct?"

Harry looked down at his covers and nodded. "Yes papa. But I'm so bored."

"I know, and if you feel up to it and Andromeda says you can, maybe tomorrow you can have some books to read or your assignments to work on. But right now you are going to obey me."

Harry nodded and ate his soup, even though he was only able to eat about half of it. Severus handed him a nutrient potion and the flu potion, before handing him dreamless sleep. "It will help you sleep. The more you sleep, the faster you heal. Come on, slide under the covers."

Harry took all the potions and slid deep under the covers, letting his papa tuck him in. "Goodnight Harry. We'll be nearby if you need us, just call for Dobby and he'll come wake us up."

Soon everyone had told Harry goodnight, and left to go downstairs, where Dobby was waiting with tea. "He's a handful when sick," Sirius sighed. "Thank you for handling that Severus. I'm not sure I would have been able to resist him anything."

"I've had a lot of experience dealing with sick Slytherins over the years. You both will get that experience now that you're Head of House."

"Would you have punished him once better if he hadn't listened?"

Severus nodded. "The main thing, especially with teenagers, is to do what you say. If you say they can expect punishment, you have to follow through. Most of the time when sick though, they'll listen once you threaten them. Harry really does seem to catch everything, doesn't he? Out of all of us, he had to be the one to get sick."

"Are any of you going to object if I sleep in Harry's room?" Sirius asked.

"No, but you are on your own when it comes to Andromeda tomorrow," Remus replied.

It didn't take long for them all to go their separate ways, either to bed or to do some grading.

The following morning Severus woke to the sound of someone getting scolded in the hallway. When he looked out, he saw Sirius with his ear in a death grip by Andromeda, getting scolded on how bad it was for his back to be sleeping in a chair like that when his son was perfectly fine and how he is a wizard and should have at least transfigured a bed. Severus shared an amused look with Remus, who had also come out to see what was going on, and went back into his room to get ready for the day.

"Gentlemen," Andromeda said when she walked into the kitchen half an hour later. They were all having breakfast, knowing they'd have to leave for Hogwarts soon. "he will be fine by tonight, but he is to stay in bed all day. If he no longer has a fever and he can eat a somewhat normal dinner, he may come downstairs but he is not to do anything strenuous. He may return to school tomorrow morning, but I will be by to give him a final checkup."

"Thank you Andromeda. How are Bill and Charlie?"

"About the same. They'll be fine by tomorrow. I'm headed there next. I'll see you all tomorrow."

That day was incredibly boring for Harry. He was allowed to read, but not do any real schoolwork, which meant he was going to be behind. He was ready to just leave his bed on his own when Severus walked in with a plate of dinner. "You weren't getting out of bed, were you?"

"No. I'm bored, can I get up?"

"After you eat dinner you may come downstairs for a bit. But only if you eat dinner."

Harry ate as much as he could until Severus nodded in satisfaction. The second he was allowed, he jumped out of bed and made his way downstairs. "People! You have no idea how much I've missed being around people," he said while falling down on the couch between Sirius and Remus. "We're going back to Hogwarts in the morning, right?"

"That's right," Remus said. "Which means back to homework and classes."

Harry shrugged. "I'll take homework and classes over this incredible boredom any day. Torture, I'm telling you."

They ended up playing a game of chess, with Dobby providing hot chocolate halfway through the evening. Nobody told Harry there was a little bit of sleeping potion in his drink, and he was fast asleep before he had even finished his drink.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hi guys!" Harry said with a smile as he sat down at the Gryffindor table. Luna and Cedric were both there as well. "I'm so glad to be back."

"You all better?" Alex asked.

"Yeah. My healer would never have let me come back if I wasn't."

"Mr Potter, you were supposed to come see me this morning," Madam Pomfrey said from behind them.

"I'm sorry ma'am, my private healer saw to me. I thought you were informed and I apologize you weren't. And it's Potter-Black ma'am."

"And who is your private healer? There is nothing in your files."

"Andromeda Tonks nee Black ma'am. Please update my files accordingly. I do not wish to be treated for anything without her approval. I thank you for your assistance on Monday."

"Very well," Madame Pomfrey said before leaving the Hall.

"Let's get to class," Harry said. The rest of the group nodded, and soon everyone was heading to their classes. He noticed Viktor trying to get close to him, but with the group he was surrounded by, he never stood a chance. By the end of the day Harry was wondering why he had been so eager to get back to classes. He had a mountain of work to do, and he had Ravenclaw Common Room duty that night. Several prefects had offered to trade with him, but he had said he needed to get it over with anyway, that he couldn't hide forever.

It took Viktor ten minutes from the moment Harry sat down in the Common Room, surrounded by a pile of books, to come over. "May I sit here?" he asked, pointing at an empty seat.

"It's the Common Room. You may sit wherever you want. I'll be working on my homework though."

"Harry, can we please talk?"

Harry heard the pleading in his voice and sighed. "Look, Viktor, I'm not angry. If you had been honest and told me you didn't have feelings for me anymore, I would have been alright and we could have remained friends. By cheating on me, you broke my trust. That's going to take time to rebuild. I'd hate to break off our friendship, especially with a war going on outside, but you need to work at rebuilding our trust and friendship. Don't expect me to come to you on my own, at least not for a while, but don't try to force yourself by my side every second of the day either. You are still welcome on Friday nights, but I can't promise my friends being as forgiving. It's your choice."

Viktor nodded. "Thank you for being willing to at least try to be friends. I feel awful for hurting you like that. Do you need any help with that homework?"

"No thank you. It just looks bad because I'm playing catchup from the past two days when I was sick. It's not very hard though, so it's just going to take time."

Viktor stood up and left, and soon several others took the remaining seats at Harry's table. Nobody talked, everyone simply worked, but Harry loved that about Ravenclaw. They could be together without having to fill every second with words. And while he was trying to catch up on his work, it was perfect.

By Friday of that week Harry was completely caught up. After Dora finally released him, she had him fitted for new robes, he sought out his friends and they spent the evening playing exploding snap and simply talking around the fire. Harry went to bed happy, knowing that no matter what was thrown at him, he could rely on his friends to be there for him.

That night Harry had a nightmare that looked so real, he could not go back to sleep afterwards. He called Dobby and had him pop him to Severus' quarters. He knocked on the door. "Papa?"

"Harry? What's wrong?"

"Can I come in?"

"Yes, come in. What's wrong, you look awful. You're not sick again are you?"

"No. I had a nightmare but it looked so real. It was terrifying."

Severus patted the bed next to him. "Come sit and tell me what it was about."

Harry sat cross legged on the bed and started talking. "It was really dark at first, but then I saw this long hallway. It was a dark hallway, and I couldn't make out where I was. I was going down the hallway, feeling a sense of danger and gloom the whole way. Nothing happened, until the very end when I suddenly saw this huge snake slither right in front of me. There was a door, but before I could open it, I was ejected out of the nightmare and woke up. It was really creepy. It seemed real, not like a nightmare which is fuzzy on the ends."

"Like a memory?"

Harry shook his head. "Like what you see when you use Legilimency on someone. Like someone's actually views. Memories are also different, they are clearer than nightmares but not completely clear. Through Legilimency it's crystal clear because it's the real memories, not copies. I don't know why I'm telling you this, you know all that. It was like I was looking through someone else's eyes, like I was really there."

"Did you occlude before going to sleep?"

"Yes, I always do. I don't understand, I normally don't have nightmares when I occlude."

"I'm not sure either. Let's try to get more sleep and we'll figure it out, alright?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't want to go back to sleep. What if it comes back?"

"You can stay right here, but you need more sleep and so do I. I'll be right here if you need me." Severus slowly pulled Harry down and with his arm around him started rubbing circles on Harry's back, hoping it would help him get back to sleep. He didn't know what to think about this nightmare. The weekend was already going to be hard, as they were going to see the house at Godric's Hollow since the repairs were completed. but maybe on Sunday they could see what they could find. He felt Harry's breathing slow down and soon he knew the boy was asleep again. For Severus however, sleep was a long time coming.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, we'll go to Godric's Hollow, and then tonight or tomorrow we'll see what we can find out about this nightmare," Severus said after lunch. Harry had spent the morning at Quidditch practice while Severus filled in Sirius and Remus. Everyone nodded in agreement and soon the apparated to Godric's Hollow.

Harry smiled softly when he saw the house. "They did an excellent job. I can already see how much better it looks."

They group made their way inside, where the owner of the company in charge of the renovations was waiting for them. "Lord Potter-Black, it is a pleasure to meet you. Please let me know if everything is done to your satisfaction."

Harry nodded and made his way around, looking at everything. When he walked into his old room upstairs he got a tear in his eyes. It was exactly the way it had looked before that fateful night. He had used a pensieve memory from Sirius to get a picture of what it was supposed to look like, and it was perfect. He had to admit they had done an excellent job. He walked back down the stairs, having finished upstairs, and smiled. "It looks excellent. Thank you."

"I'm glad you like it Lord Potter-Black. Please don't hesitate to contact me should you need anything done in the future."

"I will. Thank you."

Once the contractor had left, Harry walked outside to place the wards. He had now had plenty of practice to do this on his own, and soon he had cast all the wards he need, plus made the property unplottable. He was glad the house would no longer be a tourist attraction. He also placed repelling wards, which would redirect anyone looking for the house somewhere else, thinking they were in the wrong place. He then called Taxon.

"Taxon, I want you to be the elf for Godric's Hollow from now on. Payt can handle the Spanish Retreat on his own. If he needs help, you may help him, if you need help here, you may ask Payt for help. If you need anything else, let me know. I will have Dobby bring back all the furniture, and I'd like you to help him setting it up."

"Yes Master Potter sir."

"You all ready? I want to get back to Black Manor, instruct Dobby and then get some homework done so I don't have any tomorrow," Harry asked his fathers.

They all nodded, and soon they were on their way back to Black Manor. Harry was happy Godric's Hollow was fixed and now unplottable just like his other properties, and he knew that no matter where he went, he would be safe at one of his properties. Nobody would be able to find him unless he wanted them to.


	53. Author's Note

Chapter 53

AN: No this is NOT a new chapter! I am posting this to let you know I am 'completing' Surprise Surprise and will be posting the start of the sequel soon. I felt that several things were introduced in the last few chapters, and Harry is starting to figure out why Voldemort survived the first time. The war will be starting in full swing soon, and I need a cut off point to start the sequel as this story is becoming really long. Initially I was going to run Surprise Surprise through the end of Harry's fifth year, but I felt this would be a better stopping point with the way the last chapter ended. So, the sequel will be posted as soon as I have a few chapters written and/or outlined. I want to get back to a regular posting schedule and need a bit of a head start to do so.

The sequel will be called "The Surprise Continues" and I will post another update to this story to indicate when it's posted so you know to look for it. Also, if there is anything you really want to see, please feel free to let me know!


	54. Sequel Posted!

The sequel: The Surprise Continues, is now posted! Enjoy!


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